ECLAS

LE :NOTRE is a project of ECLAS, the European Council of Landscape Architecture Schools.

ECLAS was established in 1991 as the European Conference of Landscape Architecture Schools, when the first annual conference was held at Wageningen in the Netherlands.

At the 2000 annual conference, held in Dubrovnik, ECLAS voted to change its name to the European Council of Landscape Architecture Schools, in order to reflect the aim to widen the scope of its activities beyond that of holding an annual conference. It was at the same meeting that ECLAS also decided to investigate the possibilities of obtaining European Union support for a Thematic Network Project.

In autumn 2006, ECLAS became a legally established association with its official seat in the Netherlands. Membership is open to all higher education institutions in Europe involved in teaching and/or research in landscape planning, design and/or management.

ELAS main goal is to promote scholarship in landscape architecture throughout Europe by strengthening contacts and enriching the dialogue between members of Europe's landscape architecture academic community.

Following a successful funding application, in 2002 ECLAS launched the LE:NOTRE Thematic Network Project in Landscape Architecture funded by the SOCRATES-ERASMUS Programme. The project was initially funded for one year, but has since been followed by seven successful funding applications, including one to the ERASMUS Mundus Programme allowing LE:NOTRE Mundus Project to establish a presence at a global level.

With the start of the current LE:NOTRE III project on October 1st 2010, the Network has entered its ninth year. During the previous eight years of the project, LE:NOTRE has played a central role in the achievement of ECLAS´ goals.