1Boundary organizations, knowledge networks, and information brokers have been 2 suggested as mechanisms that help integrate information into decision-making and 3 enhance interactions between the producers and users of climate information. While these 4 mechanisms have been discussed in many studies in disparate fields of research, there has 5 been little empirical research describing how they relate and support each other within 6 studies on climate services. In this paper, two Caribbean Regional Climate Outlook 7 Forums (CariCOF) convened in 2014 are studied. CariCOFs facilitate the production of 8 regional seasonal climate information and the dissemination of it to a diverse climate and 9 socio-economic region. Network analysis, key informant interviews, and small group 10 discussions were used to answer two questions:(1) what are the barriers to using seasonal 11 climate forecasts (SCF) by CariCOF participants and (2) what are the iterative processes 12 of information exchange that address these barriers? The barriers to using SCF include 13 difficulty in demonstrating the value of the forecast to potential users, difficulty in 14 interpreting and explaining the forecast to others, and challenges associated with the 15 scientific language used in the information. To address these constraints, the convener of 16 the CariCOF acts as a boundary organization by enabling interactions between 17 participants representing diverse sectoral and geographic settings. This develops a 18 network that helps build shared scientific understanding and knowledge about how 19 different sectors experience climate risk. These interactions guide information brokering 20 activities that help individuals communicate and translate climate information to facilitate 21 understanding at local levels. 22

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