Science faces major challenges in tackling the interlinked problems of poverty and environmental sustainability. This book reviews how practical science can be applied to real-life conservation and development problems. It aims to demystify the sometimes obscure science of natural resource management, interpreting it for the benefit of those who need to deal with the day-to-day problems of managing complex natural resource systems. The book draws upon the personal experience of the authors in Africa, Asia and Latin America, but it also benefits from the best scholarship within leading natural resource management organizations, and from the realism and pragmatism of those who face these difficult environmental and developmental situations in the field. The book responds to needs expressed by the Conservation on Biological Diversity, the Global Environment Facility and many other international organizations where the problems of conserving the environment in poor countries are debated. It gives practical guidance to those who design and manage conservation programmes and demonstrates that new technologies are now available that enable integrated natural resource management to move from a theory to a reality. The authors argue that the threats to the natural environment posed by globalization require an integrated response, which can yield real benefits to those living in tropical developing countries, whilst also achieving global environmental objectives.