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Although many people agree that conservation is important because of its many benefits to the world that we live in, there are challenges to be overcome.

Benefits of conservation projects

• Maintaining biodiversity - more species can survive as many species rely on others for survival.
• Ecotourism – countries with an abundance of wildlife can set up ecotourism holidays. This means that holidaymakers get to visit and enjoy a special ecosystem whilst contributing to its preservation and providing more funding for the project.
• Knowledge - we do not know all of the species in the world. If some become extinct before we discover them, there is no way to know of their importance in that ecosystem.
• Medicines – by conserving ecosystems, there is the potential to uncover new drugs in plants that may allow us to treat diseases.

Challenges of conservation projects

• Conservation costs money - charities must be able to raise enough money to carry out their important work, such as fencing off protected habitats and employing rangers to ward off poachers.
• Lack of understanding – education and outreach programmes are needed to educate people on the importance of conserving the world in which we live.
• Monitoring the schemes – it can be difficult to monitor the effect of any conservation scheme put in place as areas can be vast or species can be difficult to keep track of. Nevertheless, monitoring is important if schemes are to continue to receive funding.
• Changing laws and legislations - this can take time as legal documents have to pass through many committees before they become the law. During this time the situation could worsen.