This article makes a conceptual, practical and theoretical observation of sustainable regional development in the context of nature reserves. In the international debate on sustainability, we have realised that integrative nature reserves have gained an increasingly important role. In Germany, there are three different categories, namely nature park, biosphere reserve and national park. Europe’s strength is its protected areas. The latest scientific discussions show how, in this process, thinking “within and with the world” occupies more and more the place of ecological reflection. This influences the formulation of sustainability strictly focused on nature, which applies in particular to national parks in Germany. An empirical study on the Bavarian National Forest Park demonstrates the possibilities and limits of integrative development strategies for national parks, counterbalancing their various interests against their economic and protection principles. Constructivist perspectives often generate conflicts and tensions, which can only be reduced through a genuine dialogue that integrates the various interests. The sociological foundations of this blockage will be revealed on the assumption of the so-called ‘blocked change’.