In 1798, Malthus argued that the world was stuck in a cycle of poverty, where any increase in food supply would give rise to increases in population which would quickly exhaust the food supply. Two hundred and twenty-five years later, the Malthusian problem has been addressed in a significant way through substantial increases in the effective land growing area and by very large increases in yield made possible by improved genetics and large increases in the use of equipment, chemicals, fertilizers, and water. This presentation argues that solving the Malthusian problem was not pre-ordained, but instead came about through a series of policy changes driven by myriad political factors. The policy changes had their impact through property rights and the accompanying system that supports these rights. This presentation traces these changes to property rights and explores their implications for addressing contemporary problems such as climate change.