Abundant Resource

An Abundant Resource is a resource that is easy to attain and exists in quantities sufficient to meet human needs without significant constraint.

• AKA: Plentiful Resource, Common Resource, Non-Scarce Resource.
• Context:
  • It can typically enable Resource Access through minimal acquisition cost.
  • It can typically support Basic Need Fulfillment through widespread availability.
  • It can typically reduce Resource Competition through supply sufficiency.
  • It can typically foster Economic Development through resource security.
  • It can typically create Innovation Environment through experimentation freedom.
  • ...
  • It can often lower Market Price through supply-demand balance.
  • It can often promote Resource Sharing through reduced hoarding incentive.
  • It can often facilitate Sustainable Use Pattern through renewable management.
  • It can often encourage Resource Transformation through value-added processing.
  • It can often support Public Good Provision through universal access model.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Naturally Abundant Resource to being a Technologically Created Abundant Resource, depending on its abundance origin.
  • It can range from being a Temporarily Abundant Resource to being a Permanently Abundant Resource, depending on its sustainability timeline.
  • It can range from being a Locally Abundant Resource to being a Globally Abundant Resource, depending on its geographic distribution.
  • It can range from being a Low-Value Abundant Resource to being a High-Value Abundant Resource, depending on its utility profile.
  • It can range from being a Physical Abundant Resource to being a Digital Abundant Resource, depending on its resource nature.
  • ...
  • It can have Abundance Measurement for resource availability quantification.
  • It can participate in Resource Distribution System for widespread access.
  • It can create Economic Opportunity for innovative application.
  • It can enable Abundance-Based Business Model for value creation.
  • It can support Social Equity for basic need fulfillment.
  • ...
  • It can be Environmentally Sustainable during regeneration cycle.
  • It can be Economically Accessible in low-income context.
  • It can be Technologically Enhanced through production improvement.
  • It can be Socially Shared via communal access system.
  • It can be Politically Protected under common resource policy.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Current Abundant Resources, such as:
    • Atmospheric Resources, such as:
      • Breathable Air for human respiration, industrial processes, and chemical reactions.
      • Solar Energy for electricity generation, passive heating, and photosynthesis.
      • Wind Power for mechanical work, electricity production, and natural ventilation.
    • Digital Resources, such as:
      • Open Source Software for application development, system operation, and knowledge sharing.
      • Digital Information for learning, decision-making, and cultural preservation.
      • Network Connectivity for communication, commerce, and collaboration.
    • Biological Resources, such as:
      • Common Bacteria for ecosystem function, decomposition, and biotechnology.
      • Non-Endangered Plants for oxygen production, food sources, and biomaterials.
  • Near-Future Abundant Resources (by ~2040), such as:
    • Basic Necessity Resources, such as:
      • Drinking Water through advanced desalination, atmospheric water harvesting, and water recycling systems.
      • Food through vertical farming, precision agriculture, and cellular agriculture.
      • Energy through renewable technology, fusion power, and energy storage breakthroughs.
    • Healthcare Resources, such as:
      • Basic Medicine through automated production, synthetic biology, and distributed manufacturing.
      • Medical Knowledge through AI diagnostic systems, telehealth platforms, and medical data democratization.
  • Abundance-Transition Resources, such as:
    • Computing Power for information processing, artificial intelligence, and simulation.
    • Bandwidth for data transmission, remote collaboration, and content streaming.
    • Storage Capacity for information preservation, data analysis, and media archiving.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Scarce Resources, which require significant effort to obtain and exist in quantities insufficient to meet demand, such as rare earth elements, undiscovered knowledge, and specialized expertise.
  • Depleting Resources, which are consumed faster than they are naturally replenished, such as fossil fuels, groundwater in certain regions, and old-growth forests.
  • Positional Resources, which are inherently limited by their unique characteristics, such as beachfront property, status symbols, and leadership positions.
  • Excludable Resources, which are artificially restricted through access control mechanisms, such as patented technology, copyright-protected content, and subscription services.
  • High-Extraction-Cost Resources, which may be plentiful but require prohibitive expense to acquire, such as deep sea minerals, asteroid metals, and certain remote energy sources.
• See: Economic Decision, Fair Allocation Task, Want, Trade-Off, Post-Scarcity Economy, Abundance Mindset, Renewable Resource, Resource Management System, Sustainability Principle, Resource Democratization, Commons-Based Economy.

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References

2012

• (Diamandis & Kotler, 2012) ⇒ Peter H Diamandis, and Steven Kotler. (2012). “Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think.” Simon and Schuster. ISBN:9781451616842

1999

• (Rodrigez & Sachs, 1999) ⇒ Francisco Rodriguez, and Jeffrey D. Sachs. (1999). “Why do resource-abundant economies grow more slowly?.” In: Journal of Economic Growth 4, no. 3.

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