The 4th (and final) U.N. meeting to negotiate a new legally binding instrument to expand the Law of the Sea to regulate the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) took place on 10-21 July, 2017. The World Ocean Council (WOC) has been providing the only comprehensive, consistent business community presence in the 2 year preparatory process for the BBNJ Agreement.
One of the missions of the WOC is to keep industry engaged and informed. To ensure that the private sector is aware of the status of the negotiations and the content of the emerging BBNJ legal agreement, the WOC organized three webinars, each covering one of the three main elements of the negotiations:
• Webinar 1 – BBNJ: Area-based Management Tools including Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
Monday, June 26, 5PM- 6PM UTC
Speakers: Paul Holthus, WOC CEO; Stella Bartolini, WOC BBNJ Project Officer; Lora L. Nordtvedt Reeve, Principal, Global Ocean Consulting, LLC
Click here to access the Slides and the WOC Webinar Recording. The password is “WOCBBNJ2017”.
• Webinar 2 – BBNJ: Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs)
Wednesday, June 28, 7PM-8PM UTC
Speakers: Paul Holthus, WOC CEO; Stella Bartolini, WOC BBNJ Project Officer; Robin Warner, Professor, Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security (ANCORS), University of Wollongong
Click here to access the Slides and the WOC Webinar Recording. The password is “WOCBBNJ2017”.
• Webinar 3 – BBNJ: Marine Genetic Resources, including benefit sharing
Tuesday, July 11, 12PM-1PM UTC
Speakers: Paul Holthus, WOC CEO; Stella Bartolini, WOC BBNJ Project Officer; Thomas Vanagt, Managing Director, eCOAST Marine Research
Click here to access the Slides and the WOC Webinar Recording. The password is “WOCBBNJ2017”.
Later in the year, a full review and analysis for industry of the final text for the proposed BBNJ legally binding agreement to the Law of the Sea will take place at a special session of the 2017 Sustainable Ocean Summit (SOS), Halifax, 29 Nov -1 Dec.
It is critical that the ocean business community is well informed of this U.N. process and the changes it will bring to commercial activities in international waters for decades to come. To help promote coordinated industry involvement in the BBNJ process, the WOC and International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) organized the “UNCLOS-BBNJ Coalition”, with the International Chamber of Shipping as chair, and including organizations such as Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), International Association of Geophysical Contractors (IAGC), European Network of Maritime Clusters and Marine Bio-Technologies Center of Innovation. Additional ocean industry organizations are invited and encouraged to participate in the coalition.
The WOC is organizing for industry the only expert review and analysis of the BBNJ process, covering the preparatory dynamics, priority BBNJ issues, concerns and input of governments and other stakeholders, and the evolving content of the new legally binding agreement. More information on WOC continuous work on BBNJ on the Ocean Policy and Governance Program Focus.