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Public goods, as economists use the term, are "nonrival" (one person's consumption does not make it unavailable for others) and, typically, "nonexcludable" (if the good is provided to one person, others cannot be prevented from enjoying it as well). The classic example is the lighthouse, whose warning light goes out to and benefits all ships. Economists devote special attention to public goods because markets do not deliver them efficiently. Rational, self-interested actors realize that if anyone else provides this good, they can have it without paying for it. The incentives favor "free riding." Others, however, see the same opportunity and so public goods go underprovided. There is thus a strong case for collective action to furnish public goods. Where collective benefits outweigh the costs of provision, government action can make society as a whole better-off.
Scott Barrett applies a related analysis to a wide range of "global public goods," including climate change mitigation, nuclear nonproliferation, the eradication of smallpox, humanitarian intervention, and the creation of a universal standard for time. In most cases, no one country has the incentive to take on the costs of providing these goods. At a "global" level, moreover, there is often no effective or legitimate authority to discourage free riders through the force of law. If we accept, with Barrett, that national sovereignty is a given (p. 17), then the only alternative is to promote more-or-less voluntary cooperation among states. Using "simple game theory" (p. xiii), he reveals the incentives that impede such cooperation and describes ways of rearranging incentives so that more global public goods are delivered.
Happily for the nonspecialist, Barrett rarely inserts function symbols into his crisp prose. Vivid narratives--about how nations might react to an impending asteroid impact or how the last smallpox case was tracked down--illustrate the potential of collective action. This book is an exciting, accessible...