Sparks was president of the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) in 2000, and the International Union of Soil Sciences from 2002-2006. For three years he chaired the U.S. National Committee for Soil Sciences, which advises the National Academy of Sciences.

Sparks was an early leader in promoting critical zone science and was principal investigator of one of the first six National Science Foundation (NSF) supported Critical Zone Observatories (CZO), the Christina River Basin Critical Zone Observatory (CRB-CZO).

In 2019-2020, he served on the National Academies Committee on Catalyzing Opportunities for Research in the Earth Sciences (CORES), a study focused on developing research recommendations for the National Science Foundation for the decade 2020-2030.

In 2021, the European Geosciences Union awarded Sparks the Philippe Duchaufour Medal for his influential research on soil chemistry and physical chemistry that helped develop the field of soil science. His work has transformed the understanding of kinetics of soil chemical processes, surface chemistry of soils and soil components, and the physical chemistry of soil potassium.