NORTH NEWTON, Kan. — Join Kansas Rural Center this November 10 and 11 in Topeka, Kansas for our Annual Food and Farm Conference. This year’s theme is “Urgency and Resilience: Cultivating a Thriving Future.”
KRC is gathering experts and resources to make farm transitions successful and profitable for agricultural practitioners. These agricultural changes will help create the backbone for a healthy, local food supply to feed our communities and protect the future of Kansans.
Join Kansas Rural Center as we take these necessary steps toward our thriving future. Register soon for early-bird pricing!
Day 1
Friday’s Intensive Sessions will be held at the Sunflower Foundation. There will also be a Farm Tour at Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation’s Industrial Hemp Facility.
The intensive sessions at Sunflower Foundation will feature a panel on mental health moderated by Charlie Griffin, with guests Walter “Tony” Siebert, Lowell Neitzel, Sherrie Vaughn, and Dr. Elizabeth Heilman.
Other sessions include a roundtable about local foods, beginning farmer’s boot camp, a walk through available NRCS programs, and information on navigating and drawing funds from the Inflation Reduction Act. Please also join us for WFAN’s Women Landowners Learning Circle.
We will end the day with a reception at the Ramada Downtown Topeka (Site of Day 2) and a showing of the film “Out Here” followed by a discussion.
Day 2
Saturday’s sessions will take place at the Ramada Hotel and Convention Center in Downtown Topeka. Our keynote, Matt Sanderson, will discuss Kansas’s future and the place of farmers in its longevity.
Following our keynote will be a panel featuring Connie Owen, Lindsay Vaughn, Dawn Buhler, and Verna Potts on the state of water in Kansas. Panel will be moderated by Karen Willey.
Other sessions for day two will include an update from our Sunflower Stories communities, including the Central Topeka Grocery Oasis and Prairie Band water quality. We will also have sessions on crop insurance, selling wholesale foods, prairie strips, prescribed burning, farm business needs and SARE sessions curated on the topic of crops, livestock, and community.
Kansas Rural Center is also thrilled to offer film sessions throughout the day this year. The three films we have chosen are “Food Sovereignty in Indian Country,” “Kiss the Ground,” and “Peace Pipeline.” Each film will end with an audience discussion.
Sponsor the Conference
Your generous contribution to our conference fund provides us with funds to pay our speakers, give scholarships to attend, and cover many miscellaneous expenses associated with hosting an amazing, educational conference to cultivate a thriving future in Kansas.
Please reach out to [email protected] t
Where to Stay
When your travels bring you to downtown Topeka, we invite you to stay at our Ramada by Wyndham Topeka Downtown Hotel & Convention Center. With a great location off I-70 near the Stormont Vail Events Center and all of Topeka’s sights and sounds, we provide easy access to the area’s businesses, shopping outlets, and museums.
— Kansas Rural Center
