Caribbean Community

Highlights for Friday, 29 March 2019 Delegates from Bangladesh reviewing the President's aid to negotiations Discussions at the second session of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) continued in an informal working group setting. Delegates finalized their consideration of area-based management tools (ABMTs), and commenced their discussions on environmental impact assessments (EIAs).Under EIAs, they considered the process for these assessments, commenting on procedures related to: screening and scoping; impact prediction and evaluation; public notification and consultation; and decision-making. During the lunch break, side-events were held on: conservation, climate change, and ocean biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction, presented by Papua New Guinea; and planning and enforcement of the high seas area-based management tools, presented by The Nature Conservancy and the Oxford Martin School Sustainable Oceans Programme.In the corridors, one seasoned delegate, heading out for the weekend after a dense afternoon plenary, seemed cautiously optimistic: “The level of detail in the different options can be seen as tedious, but once we ride the option-storm, we will hopefully be able to see the big picture, and start negotiating on our different positions.”For extensive details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from BBNJ IGC 2. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Informal Working Group on Area-Based Management Tools Plenary view of the session with Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on area-based management tools, on screen Siai Taylor, Cook Islands Channelle Fitzgerald, Australia James Ndirangu Waweru, Kenya John Brincat, EU L-R: Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on area-based management tools; Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS); Velentina Germani, UNDOALOS; and Marco Boccia, UNDOALOS Pablo Arrocha Olabuenaga, Mexico Martin Zvachula, Federated States of Micronesia Sylvain Kalsakau, Vanuatu Hwang Junshik, Republic of Korea Fred Sarufa, Papua New Guinea Florian Botto, Monaco Takahiro Nakamura, UN Environment Programme Fredrik Haag, International Maritime Organization Kenneth Wong, Singapore Fakasoa Tealie, Tuvalu Gou Haibo, China Sergey Leonidchenko, Russian Federation Informal Working Group on Environment Impact Assessments IGC President Rena Lee, Singapore, with René Lefeber, the Netherlands, Facilitator of the informal working group on environmental impact assessments Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS Kahlil Hassanali, Trinidad and Tobago, on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM ) Wini Broadbelt, EU Janice Mose, Solomon Islands, on behalf of the Pacific Small Island Developing States Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Carlos Mata, Uruguay Regina Paula Eugenio, the Philippines L-R: Roderick Harte and Paul Susman, European Commission L-R: Konrad Marciniak and Piotr Czepulonis, Poland Delegates from China

Highlights for Monday, 25 March 2019 IGC-2 participants observing a moment of silence in honor of the victims of the recent tragedies in Ethiopia and Indonesia and the passing of Amb. Virachai Plasai, Permanent Representative of Thailand to the UN The second session of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) on an international legally binding instrument (ILBI) under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) opened on Monday, March 25, 2019. Delegates first engaged in a general exchange of views, broadly related to the key features of an ILBI, including their priorities based on issues to be discussed as contained in the President’s Aid to Negotiations. They then began their deliberations on the President’s Aid, focusing their attention on benefit-sharing in relation to marine genetic resources. During the lunch break, two side-events were held: “Towards an Effective High Seas Treaty: Building on and Strengthening Regional Ocean Governance” presented by Germany and the STRONG High Seas Project; and "No fish left behind: fisheries under BBNJ” presented by the Nippon Foundation. In the corridors, many participants agreed that the President’s Aid to Negotiations is inclusive and helpful in driving the negotiations forward. Some expressed concern about gaps in the options laid out in the document, stressing that these will need to be covered during the following two weeks, if future treaty text is to be comprehensive.For extensive details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from BBNJ IGC 2. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. View of the opening plenary IGC President Rena Lee, Singapore Miguel de Serpa Soares, Secretary-General of the IGC, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and UN Legal Counsel Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division of Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS) Fuad Bateh, Palestine, on behalf of the G-77/China Janine Coye-Felson, Belize, on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Delegates from the EU consulting Juliette Babb-Riley, Barbados, on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Margo Deiye, Nauru, on behalf of the Pacific Island Forum (PIF) Sira Swangsilpa, Thailand Andreas Papaconstantinou, EU Arnavaz Ghobadi Langroudi, Iran, on screen Mohamed Atlassi, Morocco María Juliana Tenorio, Colombia Franck Kokou Kpayedo, Togo Gou Haibo, China Shanti Utami Retnaningsih, Indonesia Generoso Calonge, the Philippines Duncan Currie, High Seas Alliance Alfonso Ascencio-Herrera, International Seabed Authority Hiroko Muraki Gottlieb, International Council of Environmental Law Ariel Hernán Troisi, Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC-UNESCO) Lydia Slobodian, International Union for Conservation of Nature Takehiro Nakamura, UN Environment Programme Informal Working Group on Marine Genetic Resources L-R: Janine Coye-Felson, Belize, Facilitator of the informal working group on marine genetic resources; Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS Barbara Boechat, Brazil Sibylle Vermont, Switzerland Evan Bloom, US Salaseini Tagicakibau, Fiji

From L-R: Bala Pisupati, Forum for Law, Environment, Development and Governance (FLEDGE); Andrew Plumptre, Birdlife International; and Kat Bruce, Nature Metrics On Day 7 of the Rio Conventions Pavilion, various actors working on capacity building in the biodiversity sector held a series of interactive dialogues and workshops. Themes covered in the morning and afternoon included: ‘Building Capacity Beyond 2020’ – a reflection on capacity building experiences over the past decade of implementation to critically understand successes, failures, and key takeaways; Identifying and informing future actions to support the implementation of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (Post-2020 Framework) and the Post-2020 Long-Term Strategic Framework for Capacity Building; The biodiversity mitigation hierarchy as a tool for engaging industry and finance in effective biodiversity management; and Emerging industry trends and technologies in biodiversity data collection, sharing and monitoring that have the potential to improve our ability to effectively implement the mitigation hierarchy. In the evening, PANORAMA – Solutions for a Healthy Planet, a multi-thematic, multi-partner initiative for learning and knowledge management, convened an event to highlight its contribution to global policy targets around key COP14 agenda items, such as ecosystem-based adaptation, protected and conserved areas, marine and coastal issues and sustainable agriculture. The morning segment was organized by the UN Environment Programme (UN Environment) in collaboration with the CBD, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), and the African Elephant Fund.The Mitigation Hierarchy and Emerging Technologies Workshop was co-organized by the Cross-Sector Biodiversity Initiative (CSBI) and the Equator Principles Association. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Experiences: From Global to National   From L-R: Patrick Chesney, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat; Warwick Harris, Marshall Islands; Lilian Chimphepo, Malawi; Jamie Cavalier, Global Environment Facility (GEF) Secretariat; and Sonia Peña Moreno, International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, CBD Secretariat Jamie Cavalier, GEF Secretariat Patrick Chesney, CARICOM Secretariat Sonia Peña Moreno, IUCN Lilian Chimphepo, Malawi Warwick Harris, Marshall Islands Niamh Brannigan, UNEP Philippe Mayaux, European Commission Into the Future: The Post-2020 Frameworks From L-R: Lucy Mulenkei, Indigenous Information Network (IIN); Eric Wikramanayake, Environmental Foundation, Sri Lanka; Easter Galuvao, Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP); Erie Tamale, CBD Secretariat; Hilary Allison, UNEP-WCMC; and Philippe Mayaux, European Commission Lucy Mulenkei, IIN Eric Wikramanayake, Environmental Foundation, Sri Lanka Easter Galuvao, SPREP Erie Tamale, CBD Secretariat Interactive Panel on Biodiversity Impact Avoidance Yajna Nath Dahal, Nepal Frazer Lanier, Citigroup Rose Mwebaza, African Development Bank Bala Pisupati, FLEDGE Interactive Panel on Biodiversity Impact Minimization and Restoration Veronica Lo, Equator Principles Association Kat Bruce, Nature Metrics Andrew Plumptre, Birdlife International Interactive Panel on Βiodiversity Impact Offsetting Jonathan Ekstrom, The Biodiversity Consultancy James Trezise, Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) Emerging Technology to Support Application of the Mitigation Hierarchy Tim Hirsch, Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) Secretariat Jamison Ervin, UN Development Programme (UNDP) Learning from Local Solutions for Achieving Global Biodiversity Targets: The PANORAMA - Solutions for a Healthy Planet Initiative Midori Paxton, UNDP Christiane Paulus, German Federal Ministry for the Environment Christian Neumann, GRID-Arendal Bimala Acharya Dahal, Himalaya Organic Garden Partners launching the “Business engagement” theme in the PANORAMA Solutions for a Healthy Planet Initiative Around the Venue