Elinor Ostrom Quotes

Europe and America must act together in the face of evil. It's high time for Americans and Europeans to restore that unity and be able to take actions collectively together.

I never have reservations about doing anything as long as I'm being paid.

I haven't seen one guy beat five people yet. It needs to be done collectively.

Now, in Texas, we believe in the rugged individual. Texas may be the one place where people actually still have bootstraps, and we expect folks to pull themselves up by them. But we also recognize there are some things we can't do alone. We have to come together and invest in opportunity today for prosperity tomorrow.

If you don't trust someone to look after your investments, then they shouldn't be doing the job for you.

Transformation in the world happens when people are healed and start investing in other people.

The... provisional government unwaveringly believes that it can solve all the present problems together with the broad masses of Ethiopia. However, we can do this only if all the people come out in unison to implement our planned undertakings.

I hesitate to deposit money in a bank. I am afraid I shall never dare to take it out again. When you go to confession and entrust your sins to the safe-keeping of the priest, do you ever come back for them?

The goose that lays the golden eggs likes to lay where there are eggs already.

We cannot accomplish all that we need to do without working together.

[A party is] ... a body of men united, for promoting by their joint endeavors the national interest, upon some particular principle on which they are all agreed.

Because the rights to possessions are not adequately documented, assets cannot readily be turned into capital, cannot be traded outside of narrow, local circles where people know and trust each other, cannot be used as collateral for a loan, and cannot be used as a share against an investment.

One man will carry two buckets of water for his own use, Two men will carry one for their joint use; Three men will carry none for anybody's use.

When people come together in large numbers they become aware of their strength.

We can't talk about community values without being prepared to invest in those very same communities.

Migrants bring their culture with them… unsurprisingly, Nigerian immigrants to other societies tend to be untrusting and opportunistic.

The element of teamwork is perhaps underappreciated.

For decades, allies have counted on the U.S. to step up to the plate to work with them to protect the shared values we hold dear. As we face numerous international challenges, both old and new, we need to put more faith and investment in our international and diplomatic institutions, not weaken them.

Human Needs Project is really about how to come up with a different approach to helping, really focusing on the dignity of people living in communities you are not a part of, and how to approach these communities with help, but more look at it as an investment and a collaboration with these communities rather than, 'Here comes the white savior!'

My fear is turnout. I think a lot of people might think: 'Well, in the end, it's the rational thing to stay, but I'll let other people make that choice for me.' Don't. This is very close, no doubt about it.

The whole idea of our government is this: If enough people get together and act in concert, they can take something and not pay for it.

It's usually good news when people call collectively.

When you have a highly divided society, it's hard to come together to make investments in the common good.

As long as we're united, and as long as we continue to organize, invest, and lead with our values, we'll be unstoppable.

If you can't trust your boss - or your pension company - to take care of your investment, who can you trust? The vast majority of company chiefs take their responsibilities seriously and protect their workers' final salary pensions. But for too long, the reckless few playing fast and loose with people's futures have got away scot-free.