Kansas Envirothon Participates in National Conservation Foundation Envirothon
For the third time St. John's Catholic School from Beloit, Mitchell County won the Kansas Envirothon competition. The St John's team traveled to the Mississippi State University in Startkville, MS on July 19-24 to participate in the National Conservation Foundation’s International Envirothon.
Nine teams from across the state traveled to Camp Wood YMCA Camp at Elmdale in Chase County on April 22 for the 2026 Kansas Envirothon and to celebrate Earth Day and the 35th Anniversary of the Kansas Envirothon. In addition to St. Johns, teams from Holton, Jefferson County North, Manhattan, Olathe North, Ottawa, Rock Creek, Mission Valley all participated in the event. Chalee Braun, current Kansas Envirothon Committee Chairperson explained that "the Envirothon Program started in Kansas in 1992 and is a hands-on environmental problem-solving contest for high school students focusing on seven natural resource areas." Envirothon also serves as an introduction to careers in natural resource conservation for students who participate in the program.
Teams heard from environmental professionals with Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks, the Kansas Forest Service, Kansas Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts. These volunteers gave short presentations focused on aquatic ecology, forestry, rangeland, soils & landuse, and wildlife. Students were also asked to prepare an oral presentation on a given scenario focused on non-point source pollution. After the presentations the teams then rotated back through the stations and completed a test on the topics. Event winners were determined by their test and presentation scores in each category. Prior to the state event teams participated in one of three regional competitions held at Ellsworth, Soldier, and Council Grove earlier in April. No minimum scores were required at the regional events to advance to the state competition.
Envirothon teams are made up of five high school students. Typically, the students are from the same high school, but teams from 4-H groups, Scout troops, FFA teams and other organizations are allowed with prior approval from the Kansas Envirothon Committee. To start a team, find a group of students and/or Advisors who are interested and enthused about natural resources. Contact your local Conservation District and ask for their help in finding resource material, organizing some field days and for their financial support. A complete list of results and team photos are available on the Kansas Envirothon website at https://www.kacd.net/envirothon.cf
If you have any questions, please reach out. The Kansas Envirothon page on the KACD website provided by KACD at: https://www.kacd.net/envirothon.cfm You will also find Kansas Envirothon on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KSEnvirothon.
The team from Kansas had a little fun at the beach in Mississippi during the 2026 NCF Envirothon.
