Garrett Hardin, in his famous essay "The Tragedy of the Commons," uses the metaphor of a lifeboat to represent the Earth.

He argues that the Earth, with its finite resources, is like a lifeboat with limited carrying capacity. The environmentalists he critiques are, in his view, advocating for letting more people onto the lifeboat (through population growth and aid to developing countries) even though it will ultimately lead to everyone sinking.