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Geographic Information Science (GIS) is a sub-field of geography concerned with the acquisition, storage, analysis and communication of geographic information. In addition, GIS involves primary research on the manner in which knowledged is acquired from spatially referenced data. Clark University has been a leading institution in the development of GIS since the mid-1980s. |
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Clark University for Geographic Information Science
Geographic Information Science Programs
Clark offers four closely linked programs of study in
GIS:
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B.A. in Geography with a specialization in Geographic
Information Science
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Accelerated M.A. in Geography with a specialization
in Geographic Information Science
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M.A. in GIS for Development and Environment, jointly
offered by Geography and International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE).
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Ph.D. in Geography with a specialization in GIS
In all programs a strong emphasis is placed on the use of GIS as an analytical tool for responsible environmental management and as a primary medium of geographic investigation. Special expertise exists within the department on applications related to land use change modeling, vegetation monitoring, vulnerability analysis, fire modeling, decision making, uncertainty management, and international development.
A broad range of courses is offered in each of the following subareas:
- GIS, including geographic modeling, cartography, multi-criteria and multi-objective decision making, geodesy and spatial database development
- Remote sensing, with special emphasis on digital procedures for image classification
- Spatial analysis, including multivariate analysis, Geostatistics and spatial regression
Key faculty in this area are professors Ron Eastman, Gil Pontius, Sam Ratick, and John Rogan.
In addition, the Department of
Economics makes active use of GIS and has research strengths in the
subfield of spatial econometrics. Similarly, students in the Ecology
program with the Department of Biology commonly include Geography courses
in GIS in their program of study, with the option of taking a minor in
Geography or a dual major.
Why Choose Clark?
The Graduate School of Geography is affiliated with Clark Labs, a research center within Clark's George Perkins Marsh Institute that specializes in the analytical development of GIS and cartographic technology for environmental management. The primary venue for this activity is the IDRISI GIS and Image Processing software system, developed and distributed by Professor of Geography J. Ronald Eastman, Director of Clark Labs. First released 1987, IDRISI has grown to become one of the most widely distributed raster GIS software systems, with over 35,000 registered users world-wide. Users are primarily from the research sector, but also include educational and government institutions. Development of the IDRISI system is ongoing and provides many opportunities for students to become involved in system support and software research and development, customer service and technical support.
In addition to IDRISI, ongoing research and development projects at Clark Labs include Cartalinx, a spatial database builder software system; technology transfer for
international development; GIS Training; and educational materials
development.
Clark University is a Charter Member of the University Consortium on Geographic Information Science (UCGIS). Clark faculty are very active in GIS research, and faculty and students regularly participate in national and international conferences and workshops on GIS. In addition, Clark is home to the
Central Massachusetts Human-Environment Regional Observatory (HERO). The
HERO project examines human/environment relations in the Central
Massachusetts, using GIS as a primary vehicle for research.
Click for information on current research projects.
Geographic Information Science Research at Clark
Primary research areas and key faculty and staff engaged on these projects include:
Decision Support Systems
Principal investigators: Eastman, Toledano, Crema, Ratick
Land Use / Land Cover Change Modeling
Turner, Eastman and Geoghegan: SYPR Project
Geoghegan: Patuxent River Basin Project
Pontius: GEOMOD / Ipswich
Eastman, Toledano, Crema: CA_MARKOV
Model Validation Tools
Principal investigator: Pontius
Classifiers for Image Processing
Principal investigators: Eastman, Zhu, Toledano
Uncertainty Management in Image Classification
Principal investigators: Eastman, Crema, Zhu, Toledano
Uncertainty Management in GIS
Principal investigators: Eastman, Toledano, Crema
Technology Transfer for International Development
Principal investigators: Toledano, Eastman
Spatial Econometrics
Principal investigator: Geoghegan
Dynamic Modeling
Principal Investigators: Lucena, Eastman, Toledano
Agent-based Modeling
Principal Investigators: Ratick, Eastman
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The IDRISI GIS and Image Processing System was use to create this analysis. Results of a fire danger study are shown in the small image at the lower left. To make the image more dramatic and interpretable, an elevation model was used to calculate a hillshaded relief image for the area (upper left image). This was enhanced and merged with the classified image to produce the final relief-shaded fire danger image. Click to enlarge.
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 Professor Ron Eastman, developer of the IDRISI GIS and Image Processing System. Read an interview.
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Additional Resources
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