2006 National Cave and Karst Conservancies Forum

September 20-22, 2006, in Lewisburg, West Virginia

Hosted by Bubble Cave, LLC
Sponsored by The National Cave And Karst Management Symposium
Organized and Sponsored by The West Virginia Cave Conservancy and
The Northeastern Cave Conservancy

The 2nd National Cave and Karst Conservancies Forum is a national meeting scheduled to promote education and interaction between cave and karst based conservancies in the United States. Any board member, committee member or involved general member of these organizations should be able to benefit from and contribute to this forum.

View the Preliminary Agenda for the Forum {NEW}

On-line Registration

The purpose of this forum is to improve and maintain institutional knowledge among all cave and karst conservancies; to make sure good ideas and sound methods stay in circulation.

Pre-registration is $45.00 and $60.00 at the door.
Payable online at www.wvcc.net or by check or money order. Registration forms are on the Web site.

Planned sessions will build from past topics that had been expressed during NCKMS sessions and from the 2004 Forum. These topics will likely include but not be limited to: Management Plans, Access Regulations, Protection of Cave Critters (Practices and Aid), Working with New Neighbors, Public Awareness for Karst Conservation, Looking for and Help with Grants, Conservancy Organization and Land Trust Resources, Conservation Easements, Insurance, and Financial Issues. Conservancies can make an introductory presentation on the mission and status of their organization. Papers are invited for selection. A session of talks is scheduled. The deadline for submitting a paper has been extended to August 28, 2006. If accepted, a full version of the paper or an extended abstract should be provided to the Special Publications editor by that date. Contact Mike Warner (mike@speleobooks.com) as soon as possible if you wish to submit a talk.. A special publication sponsored by the Steering Committee of the National Cave and Karst Management Symposium, which will include outlines with related material from each of the sessions as well as articles on cave conservancies and cave conservation efforts in the U.S., will be published in advance of the forum and included with the price of registration. Registration will open Wednesday afternoon, September 20. Registration includes hosted hospitality each evening and break foods between the sessions. The annual regional gathering (Fall VAR) will be held within 1.5 hours driving time from Lewisburg over the weekend, and all forum participants are invited to attend. This gives you the opportunity to visit some caves and other cavers while in the area. A shuttle will be provided from the Forum to VAR on Friday afternoon for those registering for both Transportation from regional airports, such as Roanoke or Charleston, WV, has been arranged and will be organized upon your registration. Lewisburg does have a large airport reached by regional shuttles. There will be focused “cracker barrel” discussions on Wednesday and Thursday evening on subjects of interest to the attendees. B.A.T.S and WVACS will sponsor food and beverages. At the 2004 Forum, money leftover after all expenses were paid was split between all non-profit cave conservancies represented. This year we will distribute leftovers by drawing 3 participants’ names from a hat Those whose names are drawn will then select one or more of the non-profits represented at the forum to receive their potion of the surplus. It is important to tell us which non-profit cave and karst conservancy you are representing at the time of registration. Sessions will be all day Thursday and Friday, September 21 and 22. All primary sessions will run consecutively to allow attendees to participate in each. A block of rooms has been reserved for the Cave Conservancies Forum. Please make your reservation at the time of pre-registration, and tell them you are with Group #258—WV Cave Conservancy. Unused rooms in the room block will be released 30 days prior to the start of the forum. The Conference will be at the Brier Inn Motel & Convention Center (On highway 219 just south of I-64), 540 N. Jefferson St., Lewisburg, WV. Phone: 304-645-7722 Room charges are single $66.08 per night, double $71.68 per night.

Download PDF copies of the Registration Information and Registration Forms On-line Registration