Volunteers play a crucial role in the success of our National Cave & Karst Management Symposiums. Our all-volunteer conference teams provide essential support to ensure the seamless execution of these events every two years. The transformation of a symposium from vision to reality requires months of dedication, passion, and commitment to our mission. The team's task is to create a solid platform for our participants to network with other industry professionals while gaining modern insights into cave and karst management.
By fostering an atmosphere of community and collaboration amongst our attendees, we help disprese modern cave and karst management practices across North America.
Our 2025 production team will grow in the next several months and multiple roles still need to be filled. If you think you might be interested in joining the 2025 NCKMS team, please read the list below. If you do not see something of interest, but would still like to help, drop us a note & let us know you want to volunteer. The Western Cave Conservancy welcomes your participation!
Field Trip Manager
Field Trip Assistants
Security Manager
Program Assistant
Stage Manager
Volunteer Coordinator
Display Table Coordinator
Conference Services Director
AV Managers
Foodservice Director
Social Event Manager
Venue Relations
Treasurer & Finance Director
Registration
Marketing Managers
Director of fun, games, and weird stuff
Sponsor Fulfillment Manager
Graphic Designer
If you would like to help us coordinate NCKMS 2025 in Ely, Nevada, click the button below to send us an email. Someone will reaach out to you to help get you on the team. We won't endlessly spam you and we promise not to be annoying! Feel free to leave any questions or comments in the text box.
ely2025@nckms.org
Registration for the 2025 symposium is now open! Early registration discounts end at midnight on September 15. After that, registration packages increase by $50.
After registering, be sure to book your hotel room soon. Our hotel discounts will expire in mid-September. See our host hotel page for more details.
Sitting at Nevada's eastern edge of the "Loneliest Road in America," Ely is a remote mountain town where history, art and outdoor adventure thrive. Ely was founded in the 1870s as a stagecoach stop and trading post called Murray Station, but it would become one of the country's major copper mining regions.
The Nevada Northern Railway arrived in 1906. Now, this well preserved short-line railway draws visitors from all over the world to ride on its queens of steam and historic diesel engines.
Ely, Nevada's White Pine Public Museum features the skeletal model of a cave bear (Arctodus simus) that was discovered in a nearby cave in 1982. This extinct species inhabited North America during the Pleistocene epoch from about 1.8 Mya until 11,000 years ago. It was the most common early North American bear and is considered one of the largest known terrestrial mammalian carnivores.
The museum's collections also include an extensive mineral display of copper ore samples, petrified woods, and fossils of ancient marine life.
Partly cloudy, with a low around 19. North northwest wind around 15 mph.
Mostly sunny, with a high near 42. North northwest wind 15 to 20 mph.
Mostly clear, with a low around 15. North wind 10 to 20 mph.