Kansas Field Conference participants taking a group photo in front of the tour bus.

Kansas Field Conference

Geoscientists want to be involved in public policy decisions, but often don't know how to reach policy makers. Providing policy makers with hands-on field experiences involving natural resources-related issues is an effective method of educating this difficult-to-reach group.

The Kansas Field Conference invites state legislators, governmental agency officials, business leaders, environmental leaders, and others in positions that make or influence state policy to participate in a multi-day field trip focused on presenting balanced, unbiased information about Kansas's natural resources. Field conference participants visit sites where natural resources are produced or used to gain first-hand knowledge from local operators, regulators, and others who are affected by, or carry out, their decisions.

2024 Kansas Field Conference

 

2025 Kansas Field Conference

  • Dates & info to be announced.

Woman in red shirt describing the Big Basin site.

Conference participants visited the Big Basin Prairie Preserve in 2023.

Three men and a woman walking in front of Big Brutus.

The 2022 conference included a tour inside of Big Brutus, one of the world's largest power shovels in the 1960's and 1970's.

Explore the state: Guidebooks from past Kansas Field Conferences

2020 — Sustainability Efforts in Northwest Kansas

The 2020 Kansas Field Conference was a virtual event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Watch the videos produced for this event at the links below.

2012

Water Conservation and Consumption, Energy and Transportation, and the Agricultural Economy; 2012 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf)

S.A. Lyle, C.S. Evans, R.C. Buchanan, and R.S. Sawin

KGS Open-File Report 2012-4, 84 p.

2005

Water, Recreation, and Economic Development (pdf)

R.S. Sawin, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, and J.R. McCauley

KGS Open-File Report 2005-17

2001

Water, Energy, and Natural History (pdf)

R.S. Sawin, L. Brosius, and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 2001-18

1996

Kansas Water Issues (pdf)

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 96-23

2018

New Developments in Agriculture, Water Management, and Local Economies; 2018 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf)  

Susan Stover and Catherine S. Evans

KGS Open-File Report 2018-15, 78 p.

2008

Water, Wind, and Economic Development; 2008 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf)  

S.A. Lyle, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, and R.S. Sawin

KGS Open-File Report 2008-7, 58 p.

2005

Water, Recreation, and Economic Development (pdf)  

R.S. Sawin, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, and J.R. McCauley

KGS Open-File Report 2005-17

1996

Kansas Water Issues (pdf)

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 96-23

2024

Northeast Kansas: Riley, Washington, and Marshall Counties; Innovative Solutions to Address Natural Resource Challenges in Kansas - 2024 Field Conference Guide (pdf)

Blair Schneider

KGS Open-File Report 2024-39, 70 p.

2017

Shaped by Glaciation and the Missouri River; 2017 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

Susan Stover and Catherine S. Evans

KGS Open-File Report 2017-47, 68 p.

2011

Water as Infrastructure, Population Growth, and Sustainability (pdf) 

S.A. Lyle, C.S. Evans, R.C. Buchanan, and R.S. Sawin

KGS Open-File Report 2011-8, 109 p.

2003

Urbanization and the Environment (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin, L. Brosius, R.C. Buchanan, and J.R. McCauley

KGS Open-File Report 2003-37

2000

Energy, Land, and Water Resources (pdf)  

R.S. Sawin, L. Brosius, and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 2000-27

1997

Urban Expansion and Natural Resources(pdf)  

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 97-37

2016

Natural Resources, Economics, and Decisions for the Future; 2016 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

Susan Stover and Catherine S. Evans

KGS Open-File Report 2016-23, 72 p.

2010

Water/Energy Nexus, Rangeland and Stream-Corridor Management; 2010 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

S.A. Lyle, C.S. Evans, R.S. Sawin, and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 2010-8, 77 p.

2008

Water, Wind, and Economic Development; 2008 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

S.A. Lyle, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, and R.S. Sawin

KGS Open-File Report 2008-7, 58 p.

2004

Energy, Prairie, and Preservation (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin, R.C. Buchanan, and J.R. McCauley

KGS Open-File Report 2004-22

2015

Managing Resources for Economic Growth and the Environment; 2015 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf)  

Susan Stover and Catherine S. Evans

KGS Open-File Report 2015-4, 72 p.

2009

Climate, Energy, and Water Consumption; 2009 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

S.A. Lyle, C.S. Evans, R.S. Sawin, and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 2009-11, 71 p.

1998

Water, Petroleum, and Recreation (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-file Report no. 98-19

1996

Kansas Water Issues (pdf)  

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 96-23

2019

Oil, Salt, Wetlands, and Other Regional Resources; 2019 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

Susan Stover and Catherine S. Evans

KGS Open-File Report 2019-5, 90 p.

2014

Surface Water, Wetlands, and Petroleum Industries; 2014 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

Shane A. Lyle and Catherine S. Evans

KGS Open-File Report 2014-4, 78 p.

2013

Oil Exploration, Water Allocation, and Range Management; 2013 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

Shane A. Lyle, Catherine S. Evans, Rex C. Buchanan, and Robert S. Sawin

KGS Open-File Report 2013-3, 78 p.

2007

Industry and the Environment; 2007 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

S.A. Lyle, R.S. Sawin, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, and J.R. McCauley

KGS Open-File Report 2007-12

2005

Water, Recreation, and Economic Development (pdf)

R.S. Sawin, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, and J.R. McCauley

KGS Open-File Report 2005-17

2002

Landscapes, Resources, and Hazards (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin, L. Brosius, and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 2002-22

1997

Urban Expansion and Natural Resources (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 97-37

1996

Kansas Water Issues (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 96-23

2022

History, Industries, and Transformation; 2022 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf)

B.  Schneider

KGS Open-File Report 2022-22, 90 p.

 

2010

Water/Energy Nexus, Rangeland and Stream-Corridor Management; 2010 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

S.A. Lyle, C.S. Evans, R.S. Sawin, and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 2010-8, 77 p.

2006

Boundaries and Natural Resources; 2006 Kansas Field Conference Field Guide (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin, R.C. Buchanan, C.S. Evans, J.R. McCauley, and S.A. Lyle

KGS Open-File Report 2006-21

1999

Mining, Water, and the Environment (pdf) 

R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan

KGS Open-File Report 99-18

1995

Understanding Energy and Energy Issues in Kansas (pdf)

edited by R.S. Sawin and R.C. Buchanan, KGS Open-File Report 95-52. 

History of the Kansas Field Conference

As part of a public outreach effort, the Kansas Geological Survey initiated the Kansas Field Conference in 1995 to educate policy makers about natural resources issues in Kansas. Cosponsors (usually other state agencies) are recruited to broaden the conferences' topics. In addition to educating state policy makers, the conference benefits the KGS and other agencies. It raises the KGS's visibility within the legislature, improves relationships with other state agencies, and informs policy makers about what the KGS does and how it can be used. The experience also helps the KGS plan future research and service activities. Geoscientists want to be involved in public policy decisions but often don't know how to reach policy makers. Providing policy makers hands-on field experiences involving natural resources-related issues is an effective method of reaching this group.