Protected area integration entails a two-fold process. The first involves linking protected areas within a broader network of protected and managed lands and waters in order to maintain ecological processes, functions and services. The second involves incorporating protected area design and management into
a broader framework of national and regional land-use plans and natural resource laws and policies in order to maximize benefits from, and mitigate threats to, biodiversity. This document describes a set of practical steps needed for conservation professionals and policy makers to integrate protected areas
into the surrounding landscapes, seascapes, and to integrate protected areas into sectoral plans and strategies.