The purpose of Cave Week is to set aside time to celebrate and acknowledge our connection to caves. To learn more go to the Cave Week Website or follow Cave Week on social media @caveweek.

Check out the Cave Week Toolkit, packed full of education resources.

France Habe Prize 2025

The Karst and Cave Protection Commission of the International Union of Speleology (UIS) is pleased to announce the opening of the PRIX France HABE 2025 to promote the protection of karst and caves for generations to come.

The prize is named in memory and in honor of Dr. France HABE († 10/12/1999) from Slovenia (Yugoslavia), Past President of the Protection Department of the UIS (1973 -1997). The purpose of this prize is to promote the protection of karst and caves. Their natural heritage is an increasingly rich source of proven information on the history of our planet and of humanity, allowing us to act in a more thoughtful, effective and sustainable way for the future of our environment.

The France HABE Prize of the UIS Karst and Cave Protection Commission aims to promote the protection of karst and caves. It will reward the best or most important action, concrete idea, or publication for the protection of a cave, karstic zone, or underground environment in general.

To learn more go to: https://uis-speleo.org/index.php/karst-and-cave-protection-commission/

NCKRI National Seed Grant Program

NCKRI is pleased to announce our next call for grants in support of cave and karst research. NCKRI is currently advertising:

The NCKRI National Seed Grant Program is designed to enable investigators to initiate new cave and karst research, and incentivize new principal investigators to enter the field. We especially encourage projects within the National Park System. Proposals for NCKRI National Seed Grants are due April 24th, 2025.

Applications can be submitted at the following link:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/J6RHL9X

More information can be found here:

https://www.nmt.edu/research/organizations/NCKRI NatlSeedGrantRFP 2025.pdf

Please direct any questions about submission or budget preparation to Judith McShannon (Judith.McShannon@nmt.edu, 575-835-6940). Other questions about this RFP can be directed to Daniel Jones, NCKRI Academic Director (daniel.s.jones@nmt.edu, 575-835-5049).

Academic Opportunities

PhD Position Studying Karst Underground Through Machine Learning

There is an open PhD position in studying karst underground systems through machine learning at the Department of Systems and Control, Jožef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia. The position is under the mentorship of Matija Perne.

Dr. Perne's research focuses on mathematical modeling, optimization, and machine learning, applied across various fields (see publications), with a particular emphasis on karst phenomena. Dr. Perne currently leads a project studying cave air through statistical modelling. The PhD topic is expected to be partially related to these areas. Potential research directions include:

• Modeling the evolution of karst aquifers and cave formation
• Modeling the flow of air, water, or heat in karst systems
• Exploring other topics sufficiently aligned with expertise

Visiting Cave Scientist: Ana Celis Hernández

On March 12th, visiting cave scientist Ana Celis Hernández met with NCKRI and local cave resource managers from the Lincoln National Forest, Carlsbad Caverns National Park and the Bureau of Land Management's Carlsbad Office to learn more about different ways to manage cave resources. Ana also gave a presentation at NCKRI headquarters entitled "Caves without borders: encouraging scientific diplomacy for karst resource protection of the Yucatán Península". 

Local Education Events

On March 1, 2025, NCKRI participated in the second annual Science Bowl science competition held at Southeast New Mexico College by displaying information on local cave formation processes and local bats. We had spectrograms for each bat species and an echo meter so participants could test different sound frequencies in real time. The event, supported by DOE, WIPP and SIMCO, was attended by local students and teams who participated in the science competition.

NCKRI was also invited to participate in a local STEM expo at the Southeast New Mexico Collage on March 20,2025. This interactive event was filled with STEM hands-on activities put together by local organizations. NCKRI assembled a haul system so that students could learn about the principles of mechanical advantage to reduce the effort used to lift a heavy load. We also had a knot tying section where students practiced basic essential knots used in caving like the butterfly knot, figure eight on a bight, and double fisherman.

Research: NASA Funded Contamination Project