Many human factors influence the distribution and extent of agricultural lands and natural areas (forests), but the most important are the increase of the global population, migration, and per capita calorie consumption. Across Latin America and the Caribbean, economic growth and increasing opportunities for better jobs, education, and health services are increasing urbanization; but at a local scale (e.g. municipality), other factors modify general trends in land-use. To improve our understanding of the complex interactions between human and natural dynamics, funds are requested for a symposium entitled 'The influence of human demography and agriculture on natural systems in the Neotropics.' This symposium will gather experts throughout Latin America and the Caribbean to discuss complex interactions between demographic and agricultural dynamics, forge the necessary collaborations to study them, and set a research agenda for understanding how socioeconomic and environmental processes interact in the face of increased globalization. The questions addressed by this symposium are of both basic and critical societal relevance. Globalization is accelerating many human and natural processes (e.g. migration, agricultural intensification, land abandonment), and the interactions of these processes are complex and often contradictory. Many of the symposium participants are young researchers from under-represented groups who have a vested interest in these questions and the research skills to initiate interdisciplinary research. Results of the symposium will be published as a special issue of a leading scientific journal.
