ABSTRACT
This chapter explains our rationale, and how a Sky Trust would work. In June 2000, while many parts of America were experiencing their highest recorded temperatures, a committee of experts working for the US government issued a peer-reviewed assessment of the likely impacts of climate change. Consequently, the sky has been subject to what biologist Garrett Hardin called the tragedy of the commons. In his famous 1968 essay, Hardin wrote: "The rational herdsman concludes that the only sensible course for him to pursue is to add another animal to his herd. The state does not own a river or the sky like it owns the furniture in the state house. Most households will pay more for gasoline and other products that embody burnable carbon—;a fact that naturally causes fear among politicians. But the antidote to higher prices is dividends paid out of scarcity rent—;a predictable income stream that will offset the losses due to higher prices.
