Trade-offs in Conservation is based on a series of presentations at a 2-day Symposium in Conservation Biology hosted by the Zoological Society of London in November 2007. Notwithstanding an impressive list of delegates and contributors I must admit that my first thought on reading this in the Preface was that the book would suffer from the common problems that beset proceedings of meetings: contributors and content are largely dependent on who is available for the meeting, proceedings papers are often rushed and of varying quality, and it can be difficult to achieve a coherent narrative. I’m delighted to say that, in the case of this book, this is emphatically not the case. Either everyone in the world who knows about practical conservation was in London in November 2007 or the editors have done an excellent job in filling in the gaps and ensuring high quality. I suspect the latter.

The book is divided into five parts: I, Current Approaches and Toolkits; II, Influence of Value Systems; III, Economics and Governance; IV, Social and Institutional Constraints; and V, Future challenges. The first section gives examples of conservation dilemmas as applied to decision-making frameworks and methodologies. The authors don’t pull any punches and I was particularly interested in the chapter on global hotspots and other prioritization methodologies that seek objectivity but suffer from lack of data, arbitrary cut-offs and, in application, often fail to take into account basic business principles such as cost-effectiveness. The conclusion that proactive conservation is more effective than reactive conservation is hard to argue with. There is also a useful chapter on biodiversity versus ecosystem service approaches, the conclusion being that there are plenty of win–win opportunities even if the two approaches are often not synonymous. The final chapter in this section on defining and measuring success in conservation is a must read wherever you are on the conservation spectrum.

Part two looks at value systems and includes a chapter on evaluating and articulating the importance of invertebrates and other organisms that we regard as creepy rather than cuddly. The second chapter expands on this theme by examining the different perspectives and trade-offs between animal welfare and conservation. Then, of particular interest to those of us who have followed the protection or use debate over the decades, is a chapter looking at the nuances of trade-offs between these two approaches. As most of us have suspected all along, protection and use often work best in tandem and are context specific. The chapter is well argued, although I doubt it will lay the issue to rest. The next chapter looks at trade-offs between biodiversity and poverty reduction, and calls for greater collaboration between the multitude of players in the conservation and development worlds, the conclusion being that, again, there are synergies to be found. Finally, the power of traditions in conservation are explored through a case study of the Maasai. The author finds a complex array of interactions between traditional practice and conservation, reflecting a broad range of attitudes and drivers against a background trend of waning traditional land use.

Part three starts with an excellent chapter on the hypothesis that too much conservation funding is spent on planning, workshops and modelling to the detriment of the more mundane necessities (e.g. vehicles and uniforms for park rangers). Again, pragmatic trends and remedies are suggested. Further chapters cover marketing approaches and dilemmas, trade-offs between conservation and extractive industries, and conservation as a positive force for peace in conflict areas.

Part four starts with a chapter that examines the differences between ‘knowing’ and ‘doing’. The authors advocate ‘consilience’—a trans-disciplinary approach—but acknowledge the inevitable compromises and trade-offs that occur in any conservation programme in practice. This is followed by a chapter that will make most readers squirm—path dependence in conservation—those bandwagons that we so readily climb aboard and that self perpetuate. Directions on how to avoid or get off are helpfully supplied. The final chapter in this section examines the politics of knowledge, and makes recommendations about how to recognize the objectivity (or subjectivity) of knowledge that frames the questions that drive both policy and trade-offs.

The final section sits oddly given what has come before. The previous sections suggest that conservation practice works best when it is pragmatic, adaptive and context specific. Climate change will create massive conservation challenges but the evidence for which, where and how is still too unclear to enable us to define the actions needed. Apart from a few other quibbles (no abstracts and an overwhelmingly in situ focus) I have no hesitation in recommending this book. As a distillation of the complexities and dilemmas associated with conservation in practice it is enlightening and reassuring but, much more useful than this, its contributors bring a wealth of experience and thought to actually dealing with the problems. I suggest you buy it.