Reply to You et al.: The World Database on Protected Areas is an invaluable resource for global conservation assessments and planning

In their Letter, You et al. (1) raise concerns about the use of the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) (https://www.protectedplanet.net/) in conservation assessments and planning. Their concern arises from potential differences in protected area (PA) delineations and designations between the WDPA and alternate, national PA datasets, citing China’s National Nature Reserves (CNNR) as an example with apparent deviations. You et al. (1) highlight that using the CNNR in calculations of elevational protection yields results that contrast with those published in our original paper (2) using the WDPA. Several issues with You et al.’s (1) analysis prevent a straightforward comparison with … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: pelsen{at}berkeley.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1