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Although this appears a limitation, we show here how four heuristics lead to sustainable growth when coupled to specific ecological constraints. The two simplest ones\u2014contribute permanently or switch stochastically between contributing or not\u2014are first shown to bring sustainability when the public good efficiently promotes growth. If efficiency declines and the commons is structured in small groups, the most effective strategy resides in contributing only when a majority of individuals are also contributors. In contrast, when group size becomes large, the most effective behaviour follows a minimal-effort rule: contribute only when it is strictly necessary. Both plastic strategies are observed in natural scenarios across scales that present them as relevant social motifs for the sustainable management of public goods.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1098\/rsif.2012.1006","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2013,1,30]],"date-time":"2013-01-30T05:14:09Z","timestamp":1359522849000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1098\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":13,"title":["Plasticity facilitates sustainable growth in the commons"],"prefix":"10.1098","volume":"10","author":[{"given":"Matteo","family":"Cavaliere","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Juan F.","family":"Poyatos","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"175","reference":[{"key":"2026010519522708500_RSIF20121006C1","volume-title":"Fragile dominion: complexity and the commons","author":"Levin,","year":"1999"},{"key":"2026010519522708500_RSIF20121006C2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"449","DOI":"10.1016\/j.tree.2005.05.008","article-title":"Consensus decision making in animals","volume":"20","author":"Conradt,","year":"2005","journal-title":"Trends Ecol. 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