The Regional Conservation Forum serves as a space for engagement and dialogue, where representatives from Member organizations will share their experiences and collaboratively analyse solutions to address the environmental and sustainable development challenges faced by the region, pursuing the achievement of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) goals and working towards a common objective: promoting a just world that values and conserves nature.

As the highest governing body representing IUCN membership at the regional level, and in preparation for the upcoming World Conservation Congress to be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in October 2025, during the Forum the Members will discuss the Union's work program proposal for the 2026-2029 quadrennium. Additionally, the gathering will include a Knowledge Day, dedicated to the exchange between IUCN Members and Commissions, as well as partners, experts, representatives from national and local governments, and the general public, around the most pressing environmental and development issues in the region.

Leading up to the upcoming Forum, Úrsula Parrilla, IUCN Regional Director for Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, and Dr. Marina Robles García, Secretary of the Environment of Mexico City, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen the collaboration between the Union and the host city.

Signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding between IUCN and Mexico City @CDMX

Hosting a forum of this nature in Mexico City is highly symbolic, not only due to the love we have for the city and our aspiration for continuous improvement, but also because I believe that what Mexico City has achieved, what we have accomplished here, is a message of hope for the world. It's a message that we need to share, especially in such a complex time for humanity, in which speaking through examples of success, commitment, and transformation is crucial to keep alive the hope that we can indeed change our planet’s conditions if we are determined to do so, if we possess the will, the knowledge and the organization to do so,

noted Dr. Marina Robles García. Úrsula Parrilla emphasized: 

Having Mexico City as the host of this Forum, which will take place in this green urban space that is the largest in Latin America, puts the spotlight on the role that cities and urban areas, as engines of innovation, economic generation, employment and education opportunities, can and should play in conservation efforts and improving human well-being. [...] We want to extend the invitation to our friends and allies in Mexico to combine our efforts, capabilities, and outreach to make the 2024 Regional Conservation Forum a sounding board that positions our region as a reference for proposing diverse, just, and equitable solutions to the most pressing problems afflicting our planet. [...] Together, we will continue to be part of the change to achieve a fair world that values and conserves nature.

The Mexican National Committee of IUCN members was established in 1992 and is currently chaired  by Dr. Nélida Barajas Acosta, Executive Director of the Intercultural Center for Deserts and Oceans (CEDO). Notably, the Government of Mexico, represented by the National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (CONANP), has been an IUCN Member State since 2008. Dr. Nélida Barajas noted:

The 26 organizations that make up the Mexican Committee welcome the Regional Forum in Mexico City. We are convinced that the Forum's work will encourage and support Mexican organizations and individuals, as well as those from the Mesoamerican region, in their pursuit of comprehensive solutions for the sustainable human and environmental development of the region.