Connecticut Land Conservation Conference

This workshop is for anyone who uses maps and would like to understand them better. But, especially, anyone who has never been entirely comfortable reading maps and was afraid to ask. The focus will be on maps commonly used or encountered by land trusts. We’ll start with some basics such as “what’s scale and why does it matter?”, “what do all these contour lines mean?”, and “where did this information come from, anyway?” Then we’ll discuss what makes a good map, what makes a bad map, and some strengths/limitations of different kinds of maps. Excellent examples of maps from across Connecticut’s land conservation history will be used as learning aids. USGS maps (paper!) will be available for hands-on use during the workshop. Participants are encouraged to bring maps from their land trusts that they have questions about, such as from management plans or local plans of conservation & development.

Note: This workshop is NOT a cartography or GIS “how-to” class.