Robinson Crusoe, working alone, find it very difficult to rise above a level of subsistence living, regardless of how productive he could become. Even if he could meet all food water and shelter requirements with 20 minutes of effort each week, he will have many other desires, which he will be unable to satisfy. Because his abilities are limited, he will limit his expectations. He may be happy with his situation, but given the choice, most people will opt for a society, where illness can be treated to extend life, where a relative abundance of food and water exists, where superior comfort from clothing and shelter can be afforded, where sophisticated leisure activities can by indulged. Cooperation and specialisation increases our ability to reduce scarcity. If Robinson were an excellent farmer, but a poor fisherman, he will benefit from trade with an individual with an opposite skill set. In trading with the individual, Robinson will increase his ability to meet his needs. Robinson may well specialise in farming and his acquaintance might specialise in fishing, provided they could come to a mutually beneficial arrangement. Two individuals, pursuing their own ends will act in a way which allows them to meet their needs on the most efficient way possible. If advantages associated with trading with your neighbour outweigh the drawbacks, it is possible that they will trade. The trade would not take place at all unless both parties gain. Each can overcome some of his own limitations by utilising the strengths of his neighbour. This type of trade can be entered into, freely. Parties cooperate for mutual benefit. Fraud is quickly identified and breaches of contract result in a dissolution of the cooperative effort. Of course, our diverse society suffers from the same problem of being limited. The wealthiest person in the world might want to travel to the next solar system and come back, but the technology doesn’t exist, so he probably won’t include it in his mental list of needs and wants. He might settle for a trip into space. Even so, he will only achieve this with the help of others and he will need to cooperate with all of these others to achieve his goal. Each person who assists the billionaire, will only provide that assistance if he gains from the cooperation. The billionaire, may consider the sacrifice of all his wealth a fair trade, if he can achieve his aim of orbiting the planet. But the billionaire is limited and can only achieve his goal by utilising the talents of others. Trade and cooperation with others are essential, to advanced productivity. Cooperation implies that each party contributes to the effort and benefits from it. If one person is left to do all the work while others benefit, then this is not cooperation. Cooperation can be considered to a form of trade in which 2 or more people aim at a future goal. The scope of the effort and plan of action can be agreed. The work that each person does can be agreed and the benefit that is to accrue to each person, certain contingency and other details can also be agreed. Not all of these details need to be determined beforehand, and the agreements can be quite loose in nature, but cooperation is a form of trade. All trade, which is undertaken voluntarily and without coercion, is a form of cooperation. When trade and contracts form the basis of cooperation, there are incentives for all parties to fulfil their part of the contract.