Oceans and Law of the Sea

The Intergovernmental Conference to draft a new maritime biodiversity treaty continued its fifth session today, with the facilitators of informal discussions on various elements updating on progress made over the last two days.

The Intergovernmental Conference to draft the first-ever treaty on the ocean’s biological diversity opened its fifth and likely final session today, amid calls for flexibility, openness and the spirit of compromise that prevailed in 1982, when the landmark “constitution for the oceans” was adopted, setting out the legal framework for all activities in the oceans and seas.

The Intergovernmental Conference on an international legally binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction will hold a fifth session from 15 to 26 August.

LISBON, 1 July — The 2022 United Nations Ocean Conference concluded today with world leaders adopting an action-oriented Political Declaration to save the ocean from existing and future threats, including marine pollution, harmful fishing practices, biodiversity loss, and acidification.

LISBON, 30 June — Calls for the full implementation of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea dominated the seventh Lisbon dialogue today, with delegates describing the landmark treaty as a “beacon” of multilateralism and “starting point” for improving the conservation and sustainable use of the ocean through international law.

LISBON, 30 June — While oceans cover 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface, providing food and livelihoods for 3 billion people, current understanding of its vast biochemical processes has not kept pace with the rapid changes it is experiencing, speakers in the sixth Lisbon dialogue stressed today, as they outlined a range of scientific and other initiatives to close the knowledge gap.

The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf will hold its fifty-fifth session from 5 July to 19 August.

LISBON, 30 June — Scientific collaboration and knowledge-sharing is essential to protecting humanity’s shared ocean heritage, speakers stressed on the fourth day of the 2022 Ocean Conference, also spotlighting the need to broaden participation in decision-making to include voices in policy negotiations that — while often overlooked — possess unique experiences and capabilities.

LISBON, 29 June — While small-scale fisheries provide jobs along the value chain for 60.2 million people — nearly 90 per cent of fishing employees worldwide — their voices are often undervalued and unrecognized in global food systems, experts and delegates alike stressed today, as participants in the fifth Lisbon dialogue explored ways to protect their valuable stocks from overexploitation.