The concept of the Buchu bushcamp was instigated by the principle of peripheral development around protected areas.

The principle of peripheral development states that the infrastructure necessary for tourism and general management in a conservation protected area should be located at or near the boundary, rather than in the interior.

Infrastructure and the activities surrounding it, inevitably introduces a degree of disturbance to the natural environment, so the idea behind peripheral development is to limit such disturbance to the edges of protected areas and to maintain the interior of the conservation area in as pristine a state as possible.

Apart from this, the protected area needs the active support of its neighbours to maintain its integrity and generate income through political acceptance and tourism.

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