Protected areas have become part and parcel of global debates on such issues as security, human rights, genetic resources, foods and medicines, access to land and resources, social and cultural values and human heritage. Yet, while there are growing efforts to secure these areas, protected areas are also experiencing direct and indirect threats to their very survival. What must be done to protect these precious and often unique places has been debated over the past several decades since the earliest World Parks Conference in 1962. In the meantime, however, accelerating forces of change are..