Revealing the hidden value of protected areas

Abstract Protected areas (PAs) are the main spatial policy instrument for conserving biodiversity and have expanded dramatically in the last 30 years. This expansion has not been matched by a corresponding increase in financial investment, leaving many areas without sufficient resources for essential management actions. Moreover, in some parts of the world politicians and policy-makers are increasingly viewing PAs as an ‘opportunity costs’ that are holding back economic and social development. A major contributor to this perspective is that PAs are consistently undervalued, with the multiple benefits that they provide to society frequently obscured by the focus on their core missions to conserve biodiversity, protect rare species and sustain vital ecosystem processes and services. The recently proposed ‘Protected Area Asset Framework’ (PAAF) was designed to address these twin challenges (funding shortfalls and negative perceptions) by: i) revealing and highlighting the multiple values (tangible and intangible) that PAs generate for society, and; ii) leveraging the value-generating characteristics (assets) of PAs to attract inward investments. Here, we argue that, going forward, assets-based approaches will be essential for recapitalizing and safeguarding PAs, especially in developing countries. We conclude by proposing a protocol for implementing and monitoring the PAAF.