Office of Outreach & Engagement

Community Partner(s): Municipal staff/officials/committees, nonprofits, watershed orgs, regional planning orgs, environmental consultants, community leaders/groups/associations, academic institutions, utilities

Demographics: communities within the Long Island Sound coastal watershed

School or College: College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources

Campus Affiliation: UConn Extension County

Ansonia, Branford, Bridgeport, Chester, Clinton, Darien, Deep River, Derby, East Haddam, East Haven, East Lyme, Essex, Fairfield, Greenwich, Groton, Guilford, Hamden, Killingworth, Ledyard, Lyme, Madison, Milford, Montville, New Canaan, New Haven, New London, North Stonington, Norwalk, Norwich, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, Orange, Preston, Shelton, Stamford, Stonington, Stratford, Trumbull, Voluntown, Wallingford, Waterford, West Haven, Westbrook, Weston, Westport, Wilton, Woodbridge

Program Description

Long Island Sound Study (LISS) is a collaborative bi-state partnership established by the EPA, New York, and Connecticut, which brings together federal and state agencies, user groups, concerned organizations, and individuals dedicated to restoring and protecting Long Island Sound. LISS efforts are guided by a Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan structured around four key themes/goals:
(1) Clean Waters and Healthy Watersheds
(2) Thriving Habitats and Abundant Wildlife
(3) Sustainable and Resilient Communities
(4) Sound Science and Inclusive Management

Within the Sustainable and Resilient Communities theme, our goal is to support vibrant, well-informed, and engaged communities as stewards of Long Island Sound. In late 2021, Connecticut Sea Grant and New York Sea Grant brought on a team of five Extension Professionals strategically located in Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester Counties in New York, and in eastern and western Connecticut. Guided by a Sustainable and Resilient Communities Work Group, they focus on helping communities anticipate and overcome disturbances caused by a changing climate. By providing training and tools that foster a coordinated regional response to the impacts of climate change, they are helping empower Long Island Sound decision-makers with enhanced knowledge and skills, ultimately boosting the implementation of sustainable and resilient projects throughout the region.