The CGIAR's current research agenda is entitled, "Facing the Poverty Challenge." Inherently, it recognizes the need to focus research on the improvement of the productivity of food, fish, and timber commodities on their integration into sustainable production systems and on the effective management and conservation of the natural resource stocks.
The proposed mechanisms for such research are by (a) global activities (strategic) on commodities and subject matter, and (b) ecoregional activities, strategies and applied research on natural resource conservation, production systems, and location aspects of commodity component.
This requires a system research perspective that "Thinks globally, acts locally." In this changing scientific environment, GIS and systems analysis is to "local - knowledge intensive technologies" what biotechnology is to 'seed-based' technologies. Information tools are moving from the data base/storage and processing phase to the development of decision support systems. The tools of GIS can transfer information across space, and models across time, in order to act locally on "knowledge intensive technologies." The challenge now is to deliver the expectations of the new tools. Some examples including the use of database and GIS in the allocation of scarce resource to meet the objectives of productivity, poverty (equity) and sustainability are discussed. The opportunities for the use of these new tools in the development of the 'information technology' - the next generation of technologies needed for example, to produce the 60% extra rice in Asia in the next 30 years are also outlined.
The CGIAR is developing a set of 'Systemwide and Ecoregional Programs".
One objective of these initiatives is a conscious effort to globalize methodologies used in local studies. They are multi-sectoral and multi-disciplinary in nature and scope. As these initiatives evolve, they are including 'partners' outside of the CGSystem, and thus, are a vehicle by which the system can tap into the latest advances in science (the new tools). The UNEP-GRID-CGIAR Project is contributing to these objectives by bringing together the CG Centers to address specific issues of shared databases and research capacity in use of GIS and Information
Technology that transcends the interest of the individual centers.
We must explore the appropriate action to sustain the activities of the Network.

Ken Fischer