Book excerpt: The IUCN Academy of Environmental Law Research Studies' third colloquium of 2005 brought together more than 130 experts from 27 nations on nearly every continent. This book brings together a number of the papers presented there and offers a global perspective on biodiversity conservation and the maintenance of sustainable cultures. It addresses issues from international, regional, and country-specific perspectives. The book is organized thematically to present a broad spectrum of issues, including the history and major governance structures in this area; the needs, problems, and prerequisites for biodiversity; area-based, species-based, and ecosystem-based conservation measures; the use of components of biodiversity and the processes affecting it; biosecurity; and access to and sharing of benefits from components of biodiversity and their economic value.