Connecticut's Changing Landscape

Long Island Sound Impervious Surfaces Coastal Area Land Cover Analysis Dynamics of Global Urban Expansion Geospatial Database for Water Planning Mapping Tidal Marsh Vegetation Coastal Riparian Buffer Analysis NASA DEVELOP: Modeling Coastal Inundation

Land Cover Change Study Forest Fragmentation Urban Growth Impervious Surfaces

Imagery

Data Download

Interactive Mapping

Statewide 2004 Orthophotos Aerial True Color Coastal Aerial False Color Coastal

CT Landcover CT LiDAR-based Digital Elevation Data Packaged for CT's Coastal Municipalities Impervious Surface Analysis Tool (ISAT)

Connecticut Land Cover Coastal Municipal Data Impervious Surfaces

NEMO Website National NEMO Network Website Land Use Academy Forestry Websites Green Valley Institute Website Geospatial Technology Website Land Use Planning

About CLEAR

Mission Statement

The mission of the Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) is to provide information, education and assistance to land use decision makers, in support of balancing growth and natural resource protection. To achieve this goal, CLEAR conducts remote sensing research, develops landscape analysis tools and training, and conducts outreach education programs.

CLEAR is a partnership between the Department of Natural Resources Management and Engineering (NRME) and the Cooperative Extension System (CES), two units of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR). For more than 10 years, educators and researchers from these two CANR departments have collaborated on a number of award-winning projects focused on the relationship of natural resource protection to land use planning and management.

The common foundation of these efforts is the use of remote sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) technologies to create cutting-edge information on our changing landscape, and the use of this information to develop innovative and effective outreach programs for land use decision makers. CLEAR builds upon this successful track record, underscoring CANR’s capabilities in the area of land use research and education, and providing a more cohesive institutional framework from which projects and staff can interact with existing and potential clients, colleagues, and partners. CLEAR was also created to facilitate collaboration among the Land Grant, Sea Grant, and Space Grant College Programs.

How CLEAR Works | CLEAR Programs | The Future

How CLEAR Works

As its name implies, CLEAR is composed of two integrated divisions: one focusing on education and training, and the other on landscape research. The two divisions work together in an iterative process that results in useful programs and products for the Center’s clientele of land use decision makers (below). The needs of community and private land use decision makers drive CLEAR education and training programs, which in turn help to determine CLEAR research objectives. Research results are then "translated" into useable information, which is incorporated into Center education and training programs for our clientele.

CLEAR Programs

CLEAR is composed of a number of highly successful programs, ranging in geographic scope from local to regional to statewide to national (read Program Overviews). Although the specific topics of these programs vary, all CLEAR efforts target community and private land use decision makers, providing research-based information, education and training on how to protect natural resources and community character while accommodating economic growth. The Center’s immediate objective is to consolidate and enhance these programs, and to improve inter-project communication to form an integrated package of educational assistance for land use decision makers in Connecticut and elsewhere. In addition, a number of new research products and educational programs are planned that will focus on specific areas of the landscape: coastal habitats, urbanizing areas, and the increasingly fragmented forested landscape are some examples.

The Future

CLEAR intends to build upon its solid foundation to become more than the sum of its component projects. The goal is to earn a reputation as a nationally recognized Center of Excellence, not only in the production of cutting-edge research, innovative tools and effective education, but in the integration of these elements to provide practical and accessible assistance for land use decision makers. Through a growing and thriving Center, we envision an ever increasing number of communities and land owners able to make informed decisions in the everyday situations that ultimately determine the look and feel of our landscape.