44 In principle, every government manages the distribution of resources under its jurisdiction for the shared benefit of its people. However, based on the current state of the wild, and the rampant state-permissioned environmental degradation of the biosphere, it has become apparent that the centralized government administration of natural resources has failed, even in countries under democratic rule. As a result, wildlife con- servation NGOs have emerged to redress this failure by promoting new public processes that are embedded in the local rural communities that depend on natural resources in order to ensure more effective protection of wildlife and wildlife habitat. Unfortunately, many of these communi- ties do not have either the governance structures or the experience nec- essary to manage the biodiversity in their midst. They also tend to be disenfranchised from the seats of state power and are in need of a strong advocate to support their skill development, knowledge of how to man- age their resources for sustainability, and patriation of management authority. Through the following case study, we will demonstrate how one global NGO, the United States–based Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), is helping local groups that have been excluded from land-tenure rights, have no tradition of collaborative management, or hold cultural traditions that do not recognize wildlife or natural resources as property to be managed, to develop democratic systems that can be more effective at protecting wildlife and wild places. NGOs have been part of the government process since the advent of democracy, although their form has become more formalized over the last two centuries. A short history of WCS, where the authors of this chapter CHAPTER 4 The Emergence of Conservation NGOs as Catalysts for Local Democracy John Fraser, David Wilkie, Robert Wallace, Peter Coppolillo, Roan Balas McNab, R. Lilian, E. Painter, Peter Zahler, and Isabel Buechsel