ABSTRACT
Easter Island is a lonely island on Earth. However, by the time that the modern explorers discovered Easter Island in the 18th century, something had gone terribly wrong with the society and its development. The documented history of Easter Island provides students with a simple, easy-to-understand historical case study of an isolated society growing and developing but not practising sustainability through ignorance, neglect, self-interest or simply bad luck. A careful review of this case study provides important lessons for the isolated inhabitants of planet Earth. It also points to the ominous consequences of not practising sustainable behaviour for both individuals and society. Economists frequently focus on the roles played by incentives and self-interest in human decisions. Unlike most Polynesian palms, the palm that was indigenous to Easter Island was a very slow-growing tree. The documented history of Easter Island clearly demonstrates that, under these conditions, collapse of population, economy and society is inevitable.
