The Central Asia Regional Information Network (CARIN) is participating member the GOFC-GOLD network (Global Observations of Forest Cover and Global Observations of Land Use Dynamics).  CARIN has strong linkages with other GOFC-GOLD regional information networks such as SCERIN (here, too), MEDRIN, CaucRIN, and SARIN.

CARIN geography centers on five countries emerging from the Soviet Union (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) and Mongolia, and extends into parts of neighboring countries with comparable biogeophysical environments. We are an inclusive, informal network of scientists and professionals located within the region or with scientific interests in Central Asia.

The thematic focus of CARIN spans transdisciplinary studies of land-cover and land-use change (LCLUC) processes and their implications for climate & society, human movements, agricultural systems dynamics, forest function (including disturbances and fires), urbanization, biodiversity, ecosystem carbon storage and flux dynamics, and water and ecosystems management. Some critical regional issues include changes in the regional water cycle and snow seasonality; land surface erosion, dust storms, and public health; remittances and labor migration effects on rural livelihoods; changes in habitat and ecosystem services; increasing urbanization; grazing and livestock in response to socio-economic and environmental changes; and regional climate change/variation/extremes, and natural hazards (e.g., landslides, mudflows, flooding, drought, and fire).

CARIN’s primary aims include:

• Providing a platform for collaboration among experts in geospatial information technologies in the region;

• Building regional capacity for using remote sensing and other geospatial technologies to study key LCLUC processes;

• Fostering regional collaborations to monitor the dynamics, stability, and vulnerability of landscapes, communities, and ecosystems amidst change; and

• Promoting effective strategies for sustainable management of landscapes at local, regional, and pan-Eurasian scales.