Public/private partnerships and protected areas: selected Australian case studies

The conservation of biodiversity requires a significant commitment by governments, industry sectors and the wider community to encourage cultural change across community and industry sectors which ensures a long-term balance between sustainable land management and biodiversity conservation. At the regional level viable biodiversity conservation requires a range of management strategies that may include the establishment of statutory protected areas, a range of off-park conservation management measures and achievable guidelines for ecologically sustainable land management at the landscape scale. Monitoring the performance of protected areas in achieving biodiversity conservation requires a commitment by government to facilitate involvement and participation of the wider community. Four Australian case studies discuss how public–private conservation partnerships are integrating sustainable land management and biodiversity conservation at the regional level.