In some regions of the world, the belief in spirits inhabiting certain areas has served to quickly regenerate abandoned plots into mature forest. In other areas, sacred places play a major part in safeguarding critical sites in the hydrological cycle of watershed areas. Very often, a water well and its adjoining areas are held sacred, giving it a high degree of protection from pollution or overexploitation. Furthermore, in a number of instances, sacred sites have been instrumental in preserving the ecological integrity of entire landscapes. For these reasons, sacred sites and cultural landscapes can help in assessing the potential natural vegetation of degraded ecosystems or ecosystems modified by humans. As indicator sites, by using endemic plant species that are well adapted to the climatic and edaphic conditions of the area, they are instrumental for the rehabilitation of degraded environments.

Sacred sites contain important reservoirs of genetic and species diversity and can help to protect ecosystems against environmental degradation. In this way, the transdisciplinary nature of the interface between cultural perceptions and scientific rationale in the effective protection of biological-cultural diversity found in sacred sites provides compelling models for the elaboration of integrated conservation-development programmes undertaken by environmental and development organisations.

In order to secure and maintain the support and involvement of indigenous and local people in the conservation of biodiversity, examples of the traditional conservation of sacred sites and cultural landscapes need to be increasingly recognised and disseminated as alternative models of sustainable development, which build upon traditional foundations. Up to now, traditional sacred sites have only rarely been formally reflected in protected area designations and management plans. The eventual designation of specific "sacred sites" as a protected area category could be instrumental in gaining the support of indigenous and local people in conserving the environment and its natural resources. It would also valorise traditional belief systems and sustain the cultural heritage, integrity and identity of indigenous peoples.

One of the important events in 2005, the Tokyo symposium on 'Conserving Cultural and Biological Diversity: The Role of Sacred Natural Sites and Cultural Landscapes' drew on previous and on-going work of several UN bodies and international organizations with regard to conserving and managing sacred natural sites and cultural landscapes, including UNESCO, UNU, IUCN, CBD, the Secretariat of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, and FAO. Go to 'Tokyo Symposium' to see the results and outcomes.