We are writing to ask for your support of the 5th Open Science Meeting of the Global Land Programme in Oaxaca, Mexico. The focus this year is “Pathways to a Sustainable and Just Future” and we anticipate hosting 700 land system scientists from November 4-8, 2024. Our meeting is like no other in that it brings together new generations of scientists from the Global South and industrialized economies along with societal actors, who share results and discuss creative and transformative contributions to Land Use/Systems Science.

Sponsoring a component of the conference allows access to an audience of scientists and practitioners whose research and efforts contribute to businesses, governments’ and civil societies’ efforts to build a more sustainable world. Land science is central because land use is central to addressing sustainability issues, including biodiversity conservation, climate change, food security, poverty alleviation, and renewable energy. Since we gathered last for the GLP Open Science Meeting (OSM) in 2019 humanity has navigated through unparalleled challenges and transformations: a global pandemic, international conflicts and regional disputes reshaping geopolitical boundaries and narratives, and some of the hottest years in recorded history, all of which have tested the resilience of societies worldwide. Land systems science aims to understand the state of the world’s land systems, which underpin numerous sustainable development challenges and solutions. The conference aims to identify the potential solution space for more sustainable trajectories.

Over the course of a week, the world’s leading land system scientists and practitioners will come together to present and discuss cutting-edge science and new findings on topics as far ranging as: how to prevent and eliminate deforestation, build more equitable supply chains, and discover pathways for land systems to enable transformative changes for the good of humans and nature. Oaxaca, Mexico, a place enriched by centuries of cultural diversity and transformation, promises to inspire new ways of understanding land systems, following three themes:

• The State of the World

• Imagining the Future(s)

• Enabling Transformative Changes

Conference proceedings will focus on better understanding how ongoing global and regional transformations affect people and nature in different locales, and how these local responses have global implications. GLPs network of members is over 2500 strong representing nearly every country on earth. Our goal for this meeting is to expand access for more of our scientists, removing financial barriers to participation in particular by historically underrepresented communities around the world and expanding the types of speakers and scientific knowledge. The Meeting will be a place to envisage diverse futures and carve out potential pathways of change for communities, civil society, and governments in support of collective efforts to realize these imagined futures.

We have created this prospectus with the goal of offering a wide variety of support and sponsorship opportunities; as one of our allies in supporting pathways to sustainable development, we hope you can join us as a sponsor of what will be a pivotal gathering, one that allows you to engage with our community, taking advantage of synergies in our work and goals.

We look forward to welcoming you in Oaxaca, one of Mexico’s most ethnically diverse states, together with 700 land system scientists from around the world.

We thank you in advance for your support!

Daniel Müller - Chair, Scientific Committee OSM 2024,

Rachael Garrett and Navin Ramankutty - Co-Chairs, GLP Scientific Steering Committee,

Ariane de Bremond - Executive Director, GLP, Chair, Organizing Committee