Manhattan Convention Center | October 7-10, 2024 | Manhattan, Kansas
For the past 50 years, NAA's Natural Areas Conference has gathered federal, tribal, state, regional, and local natural areas practitioners from nonprofit organizations, private industry, and academic institutions to foster communication and collaboration that can lead to progress in connection to challenges in the management of natural areas.
Manhattan, Kansas is nestled in the heart of the scenic Flint Hills, a globally significant remnant of the once vast tallgrass prairie ecosystem. Managing ecologically significant landscapes for the protection of biodiversity is a specialized segment of conservation and ecological science that includes management strategies to avert the permanent loss of or degradation of rare species and to preserve the unique functions of natural communities.
Thank you to our partners who make the 2024 Natural Areas Conference possible
NAC24 Partner Advisory Committee
In-Kind Sponsors
Exhibitors
Sponsor and exhibitor options are still available! Contact Holli Redekop for more information.
Opening Plenary Speaker
Lisa Smith
Executive Director, Natural Areas Association
Keynote Speaker
Sunny Fleming
Director of Environment, Conservation, & Natural Resources Solutions at Esri
Opening Plenary Speaker
Sara Baer, Ph.D.
State Biologist and Director, Kansas Biological Survey & Center for Ecological Research
Professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas
Opening Plenary Speaker
John Blair, Ph.D.
Director, Konza Prairie Biological Station
Distinguished Professor, Division of Biology, Kansas State University
Opening Plenary Speaker
Kelly Kindscher, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist, Kansas Biological Survey & Center for Ecological Research
Moderator
Rex Buchanan
Director Emeritus of the Kansas Geological Survey
Panelist
Jon P. Beckmann, Ph.D.
Wildlife Supervisor, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Panelist
Tony Capizzo
Flint Hills Initiative Manager, The Nature Conservancy
Panelist
Andrew Davis
Cow-Calf Producer, Davis Family Ranch
Panelist
Mike Disney
State Coordinator for the Partners for Fish and Wildlife (PFW) Program in Kansas
Panelist
Jane Koger
Owner, Homestead Ranch
Panelist
David Kraft
Technical Coordinator, Kansas Grazing Lands Coalition
Panelist
Dean Krehbiel
Natural Resource Conservation Service
Panelist
Roger W. Wells
Tallgrass Legacy Alliance
Join the people who protect and manage our natural areas.