Why do conservation?

Many of us are concerned about conservation issues. We care about primates. We worry about hunting and deforestation. We worry about environmental degradation. We want to protect biodiversity. But what exactly are the goals of conservationists? Is it to preserve biodiversity? To protect habitats? To save certain species from extinction?

What do you think are the goals of conservation? What does conservation mean to you?
Define any terms you use (such as biodiversity).

To determine effective strategies, it is important to understand what we are trying to do!