Conservation Area Planning (CAP) is a methodology developed by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and its partners to analyze information about a natural area and plan activities that best address priority conservation needs. Although this tool was designed for the conservation of biological diversity, TNC’s worldwide experience demonstrates that many of these areas include valuable cultural heritage that should also be preserved. This document presents a summary of a methodology that can be applied to plan the conservation of tangible cultural resources following the same process created for biodiversity conservation planning.

Generally speaking, the purpose here is to conserve tangible cultural resources and reduce and/or eliminate critical threats (deterioration and causes of deterioration of greatest impact) that are damaging to them. By identifying these priorities, the CAP allows planners and protected area managers to better allocate limited human and financial resources assigned to the areas. The main purpose is to provide a planning methodology for the conservation of natural and cultural resources in a given area. Up until now, this methodological proposal has been modified and improved with valuable contributions made by a group of experts that have been working in conservation. Input from the first application of CAP in the field, led to the formulation of 2003-2008 Tikal National Park’s Master Plan (that took place from July to December, 2002), a strategic plan that covers the conservation of natural and cultural resources.