| Sumario: | This case study discusses the approaches used by the agricultural research system of Trinidad and Tobago to obtain and manage scientific information. Information access is reviewed in relation to the demand for information by the research system, the sources of information that it has access to, and the mechanisms used to actually obtain and manage the information. The most influential characteristic of demand Is the need for the research system to respond to rapidly changing agricultural production priorities and interests—information services in the country must remain abreast of changing priorities and they must develop resources and services that are flexible enough to cope with rapid changes in subject focus. Libraries, information centers, research seminars, and information networks are the only mechanisms in which the research system has consciously invested. Personal contacts between researchers are the most frequently used mechanism; research networks are the least-used mechanism, at least in any systematic way. Major issues raised by the study include the way information units respond to changing demands for their services, the need for closer contacts with research management and priority-setting mechanisms, how information units deal with competing demands for their resources that arise from their multiple functions, the value of management commitment and high visibility, the role of the private sector, collaboration and coordination of information efforts, information technology, participation in regional and international networks and activities, and the qualifications and skills required of information personnel.
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