The desire to save species remains strong, but multiple challenges lie ahead. Scientists, environmentalists, and policy makers debate how to save species.There is a great deal of soul-searching over how to involve local people in the effort. One ongoing debate is whether people should even attempt to save all species. Edward O.Wilson says they should. He argues in his book The Diversity of Life that governments should have a commitment "to let no species knowingly die, to take all reasonable action to protect every species and race in perpetuity." 57

According to Wilson and others, to fully carry out the Endangered Species Act's mandate would require establishing huge areas as sanctuaries and stopping development of relatively undisturbed land.

Wilson suggests a way to do this. First, identify "hot spots," areas that contain large numbers of different species and that face a...