This guide is intended to provide direction for Parks Canada staff & others involved with the Agency in co-operative management in the preparation of management plans for protected heritage areas. Its purpose is to clarify accountabilities and to set out nationally consistent standards. The guide begins with a review of the purpose of a management plan and general sections on accountability for management planning, the management planning process, and the preparation of the scoping document that is required for all plan & plan review programs. The next three sections detail the importance & contents of management plans for national parks, historic sites, & marine conservation areas. The final sections cover the following: how to involve co-operative managers in planning; key elements of public consultation; environmental assessment of management plans; and production, printing, & distribution of plans. Annexes contain: an outline of the legislative & policy basis for management plans; a guide to the preparation of ecological integrity statements for national parks; and an action plan for the declaration of wilderness areas in national parks.