December 4, 2012
Presented by Emily Wilson and Chet Arnold, UConn CLEAR
How has our local landscape been changing over the last 25 years?CLEAR’s Changing Landscape is an ongoing project that uses remote sensing technology to chart land cover changes over time. Long Island Sound Study funding has allowed CLEAR to expand the project study area to include the portions of New York draining to the Sound, and to add a 2010 dataset that makes the total study period a whopping 25 years. Land cover change, riparian (streamside) zone change, and impervious area are all included in the study, and the information is posted on an extensive interactive website that includes data summaries and maps at the regional, state, major watershed, and small watershed levels. This webinar will introduce you to the study, go over a few basic findings, and give you a virtual tour of the site so that you can dig into the data, maps, and tables on your own. Whether you’re new to CLEAR land cover data or have been impatiently waiting for the update, this webinar is for you!
September 18, 2012
Presented by Bruce Hyde, UConn CLEAR and Juliana Barrett, CT Sea Grant
Hurricane Irene showed just how vulnerable we are to damage from storms and tidal inundation. The impact of climate change on coastal municipalities is likely to result in heavier downpours, more vulnerable coastlines, and increases to the amount of land that could be inundated by rising sea levels. These events will challenge communities to come up with adaptation strategies to address impacts that range from a loss of coastal wetlands to a loss of tax base.
This webinar identifies municipal issues related to climate change such as eroding coastlines, overburdened stormwater systems, failing septic systems, and street flooding, and provides examples of how some communities are addressing the challenge.
July 18, 2012
Presented by Emily Wilson, UConn CLEAR
Interactive web maps are powerful tools for organizing and disseminating information for public consumption. For years, Google has led this revolution in online mapping by making it easy for practically anyone to create a custom web map of their own using Google Maps and Google Earth. ESRI, the creator of the most popular desktop GIS software, has recently launched ArcGIS.com, a free web based tool for creating web maps and mapping applications. It allows a user to create customizable maps with built in functions including the ability to: connect to a wide variety of base maps and mapping services, import existing GIS data, customize how information is displayed, edit data using a simple interface or smartphone, collaborate with others, create online galleries of web maps, establish public or private map groups, add new data, and more. This webinar will provide an overview of ESRI’s new ArcGIS.com website and live demonstration of many of the functions listed above.
July 10, 2012
Presented by Jiff Martin, UConn Cooperative Extension and Adam Rabinowitz, UConn CANR
Most residents in Connecticut have consistent, dependable access to enough food for active, healthy living. Yet each year there are households that experience limited access to food due to a lack of money or other resources. Between 2008 and 2010, 12.7 percent of residents in Connecticut were living in food insecure households (38% of which were living in ‘households with very low food insecurity’). Although it is extremely difficult to pinpoint where these food insecure households are located, we can look at certain town-level variables to draw comparisons on a town by town basis.
UConn Zwick Center for Food and Resource Policy, UConn Cooperative Extension, CT Food Policy Council, and UConn CLEAR have collaborated to develop the new Community Food Security (CFS) in Connecticut Study with an accompanying website with interative map features. The CFS study and website provides a picture of how towns in Connecticut compare to each other under three separate conditions: 1) What is the likelihood that a resident is at-risk for food insecurity?; 2) What is the status of access to food options and geographic proximity to food retailers?; 3) How well are town residents being served through public food assistance services?
This webinar is a part of our 2012 webinar series covering a broad range of topics related to land use planning, land cover research, natural resource protection and geospatial technology.
Community Food Security in CT Abstract
Most residents in Connecticut have consistent, dependable access to enough food for active, healthy living. Yet each year there are households that experience limited access to food due to a lack of money or other resources. Between 2008 and 2010, 12.7 percent of residents in Connecticut were living in food insecure households (38% of which were living in ‘households with very low food insecurity’). Although it is extremely difficult to pinpoint where these food insecure households are located, we can look at certain town-level variables to draw comparisons on a town by town basis.
UConn Zwick Center for Food and Resource Policy, UConn Cooperative Extension, CT Food Policy Council, and UConn CLEAR have collaborated to develop the new Community Food Security (CFS) in Connecticut Study with an accompanying website with interative map features. The CFS study and website provides a picture of how towns in Connecticut compare to each other under three separate conditions:
- What is the likelihood that a household is food secure?;
- What is the status of transportation access to food and geographic proximity to food retailers?;
- How well are town residents being served through public and private food assistance services?
May 8, 2012
Presented by Cary Chadwick and Emily Wilson, UConn CLEAR
Interactive web maps are powerful tools for organizing and disseminating information for public consumption. For years, Google has led this revolution in online mapping by making it easy for practically anyone (even you) to create a custom web map of their own using Google Maps and Google Earth. But Google isn’t the only game in town anymore.
ESRI, the creator of the most popular desktop GIS software, has recently launched ArcGIS.com, a free web based tool for creating web maps and mapping applications. It allows a user to create customizable maps with built in functions including the ability to: connect to a wide variety of base maps and mapping services, import existing GIS data, customize how information is displayed, edit data using a simple interface or smartphone, collaborate with others, create online galleries of web maps, establish public or private map groups, add new data, and more. This webinar will provide an overview of ESRI’s new ArcGIS.com website. Many of the functions listed above will be covered through discussion and live demonstration and will include examples of how towns and land trusts might use the technology to meet their online mapping needs.
March 13, 2012
Presented by Michael Dietz and David Dickson, UConn CLEAR
No need to get on the bus for this tour! Join us for a virtual tour of Low Impact Development (LID) around the State of Connecticut. Dave Dickson and Mike Dietz will use NEMO’s LID Atlas, a cutting-edge web tool powered by Google Maps, to highlight LID projects around the state. At each stop you’ll learn the background of each site, get to see pictures, learn about obstacles, and successes. Different types of LID practices will be covered, from rain gardens to porous pavements. At the end, we’ll demonstrate the use of the Atlas so that you can your own tour not only around Connecticut but the entire U.S. Perhaps some of these sites will inspire you to initiate an LID project in your town? Come find out!
February 28, 2012
Presented by Bruce Hyde, Emily Wilson and Chet Arnold, UConn CLEAR
A “buildout” analysis is a planning tool that can provide insight into the possible future impacts of a town’s current land use regulations. But what does a buildout really tell you? In the first half of the webinar, we’ll explain what a buildout is and isn’t, go over common misconceptions about buildouts, and review several different types of buildouts and what type of data are needed for each. In the second half we’ll illustrate some of these concepts with two case studies – one done in 2008 for the CT Office of Policy and Management and in partnership with the Central Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, and a recently completed buildout done in partnership with the Town of Kent. And of course, we’ll (attempt to) answer your questions. After spending this hour with us, you may not be able to do a buildout using your iPhone and a pocket calculator, but you will be able to ask good questions about the need for, uses, and types of buildouts that might apply to your community.