The conservation of biodiversity and natural resources is closely linked to the fulfilment of human rights. Conservation can help create environments that provide sustainable supplies of the goods and services people need to live healthy, fulfilled and dignified lives – helping to fulfil people’s right to development and to life and livelihood. Secure rights, for example tenure and access to resources, can also contribute to conservation by providing the incentives and legal frameworks for careful stewardship of resources. However, conservation can also impact negatively on people’s rights, for example by denying access to resources, and weak rights (insecure tenure for example) can undermine conservation efforts. BirdLife has committed to support and promote the realisation of human rights within the scope of its conservation programmes (BirdLife’s Position on Conservation and Human Rights can be found at www.birdlife.org/action/ground/conservation-rights/index.html). This document provides an introduction to the issue of human rights in the context of conservation, including some of the practical steps that should be taken to integrate human rights into projects and programmes. It is intended for conservation practitioners at all levels within BirdLife – from senior managers with responsibility for programme delivery and the conduct of organisations, to field-officers delivering conservation projects on the ground.