Pacific Small Island Developing States

On Thursday, 13 July, the informal working group on capacity building and technology transfer continued discussions in the morning, focusing on: objectives, principles, modalities, clearinghouse mechanism, funding, monitoring and review, and definitions. The informal working group on crosscutting issues, facilitated by Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil, focused on: institutional arrangements, including a decision-making forum, a scientific/technical body, a clearinghouse, a financial mechanism, dispute settlement, responsibility and liability, and review; and the preamble of an international legally binding instrument. 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 the 4th Session of the Preparatory Committee Established by the UN General Assembly Resolution 69/292: Development of 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. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Franz Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Rena Lee, Singapore, Facilitator of the informal working group on capacity building and transfer of marine technology; Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS; and Vita Onwuasoanya, UNDOALOS Juliette Babb-Riley, Barbados, on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Sabita Nakarmi, Nepal Faiyaz Murshid Kazi, Bangladesh Marc Richir, EU Carlos García Reyes, Guatemala Saifu George, Sierra Leone Jorge Dotta, Uruguay Vladimir Ryabinin, Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) Margo Deiye, Nauru, on behalf of the Pacific Small Island Developing States Riena Dwi Astuty, Indonesia Kjell Kristian Egge, Norway Ismail Raushan, Maldives, on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Dhisadee Chamlongrasdr, Thailand James Ndirangu Waweru, Kenya Rogelio Villanueva Jr., the Philippines Mohamed Atlassi, Morocco Audrey Naana Abayena, Ghana Tatiana Shuvalova, Russian Federation Luke Tang, Singapore Jean Kenfack, Cameroon Tevita Suka Mangisi, Tonga Alain Tellier, Canada Pablo Arrocha Olabuenaga, Mexico Zentaro Naganuma, Japan Estrella Tulay, the Philippines Landisang Kotaro, Palau Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil, facilitating the informal working group on crosscutting issues L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Barbara Boechat, Brazil; Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil; Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS; and Michele Ameri, UNDOALOS Sibylle Vermont, Switzerland Zakieh Taghizadeh, Iran Metod Špaček, EU Duncan Currie, Greenpeace Evan Bloom, US Oleg Rykov, Russian Federation Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Aboubacar Oulare, Guinea Florian Botto, Monaco L-R: Zentaro Naganuma, Japan, in a conversation with Matthías Pálsson, Iceland Delegates from the Caribbean Community Delegates from Germany

On Wednesday, 12 July, the informal working group on area-based management tools (ABMTs), including marine protected areas (MPAs), continued discussions on the designation process, as well as on implementation, relationships to existing instruments, and monitoring and review. The informal working group on environmental impact assessments (EIAs), facilitated by René Lefeber (the Netherlands), then addressed: obligations, guiding principles and approaches, criteria and thresholds, process, content of EIA reports, relationships to existing instruments, clearinghouse mechanisms, capacity building and technology transfer, and monitoring and review. The informal working group on capacity building and technology transfer, facilitated by Rena Lee (Singapore), started discussion of objectives, and guiding principles and approaches. 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 the 4th Session of the Preparatory Committee Established by the UN General Assembly Resolution 69/292: Development of 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. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Franz Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS); Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on ABMTs, including MPAs; Valentina Germani, UNDOALOS; and Carlos Fuentes, UNDOALOS Siai Taylor, Cook Islands Kjell Kristian Egge, Norway Ma Xinmin, China Riena Dwi Astuty, Indonesia Michael Googan, Australia Blaise Kuemlangan, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) Rena Lee, Singapore Evan Bloom, US Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on ABMTs, including MPAs Luis Oña Garcés, Ecuador, on behalf of the G-77/China Veronica Frank, Greenpeace Zentaro Naganuma, Japan Arnór Snæbjörnsson, Iceland Margo Deiye, Nauru, on behalf of the Pacific Small Island Developing States Leonito Bacalando Jr., Federated States of Micronesia John Fintakpa Lamega, Togo Kate Neilson, New Zealand L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; René Lefeber, the Netherlands, Facilitator of the informal working group on environmental impact assessments; Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil; Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; René Lefeber, the Netherlands, Facilitator of the informal working group on environmental impact assessments; Michael Schewchuk, UNDOALOS; and Yoshinobu Takei, UNDOALOS Wini Broadbelt, EU Lizanne Aching, Trinidad and Tobago, on behalf of the Caribbean Community Babajide Alo, Nigeria Oleg Rykov, Russian Federation Cymie Payne, IUCN Cheikhy Sidi, Mauritania Clarissa Jacqueline Caancan, the Philippines Duncan Currie, Greenpeace Penny Race, New Zealand L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Rena Lee, Singapore, Facilitator of the informal working group on capacity building and transfer of marine technology; and Vita Onwuasoanya, UNDOALOS Kathleen Siala Taituave, Samoa Da Hee Song, Republic of Korea Pablo Arrocha Olabuenaga, Mexico Martin Zvachula, Federated States of Micronesia Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group L-R: Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, consulting with Thembile Joyini, South Africa L-R: Sergey Leonidchenko, Russian Federation, in a conversation with Kjell Kristian Egge, Norway, and Evan Bloom, US Delegates from Fiji and Samoa Delegates from the Philippines

On Tuesday, 11 July, PrepCom 4's informal working group on marine genetic resources (MGRs), addressed: the nature of benefits; benefit-sharing modalities; intellectual property rights; monitoring of utilization of MGRs; a clearinghouse mechanism; and capacity building and technology transfer. The informal working group on measures such as area-based management tools (ABMTs), including marine protected areas (MPAs), facilitated by Alice Revell (New Zealand), discussed: objectives, guiding principles and approaches, criteria for identifying areas in need of protection; and the process for establishing ABMTs, including decision-making. 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 the 4th Session of the Preparatory Committee Established by the UN General Assembly Resolution 69/292: Development of 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. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Franz Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS); Janine Coye-Felson, Belize, Facilitator of the informal working group on marine genetic resources; Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS; and Michele Ameri, UNDOALOS Dominic Misiolo Sofe, Samoa Riena Dwi Astuty, Indonesia Zha Hyoung Rhee, Republic of Korea Hina Saeed Baig, Pakistan Zentaro Naganuma, Japan Juliette Babb-Riley, Barbados, on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Leonito Bacalando Jr., Federated States of Micronesia Rogelio Villanueva Jr., the Philippines José Luis Fernández Valoni, Argentina Essam Yassin Mohammed, Eritrea Margo Deiye, Nauru, on behalf of the Pacific Small Island Developing States Zakieh Taghizadeh, Iran Shara Duncan, Costa Rica Sergey Leonidchenko, Russian Federation, making an intervention Konrad Marciniak, EU Hiroko Muraki Gottlieb, IUCN Jessica Battle, WWF Alain Tellier, Canada Sabita Nakarmi, Nepal Sibylle Vermont, Switzerland, making an intervention L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil; Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UNDOALOS; Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on ABMTs, including MPAs; and Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS Sophie Mirgaux, EU Ma Xinmin, China Kate Neilson, New Zealand Aboubacar Oulare, Guinea Fred Sarufa, Papua New Guinea Drusila Esther Bayate, the Philippines Luis Oña Garcés, Ecuador, on behalf of the G-77/China Tevita Suka Mangisi, Tonga Evan Bloom, US Mirriam Lidimani, Solomon Islands L-R: Luis Oña Garcés, Ecuador, in a conversation with Zakieh Taghizadeh, Iran Alexander Shestakov (center), WWF, in a discussion with delegates from the Russian Federation L-R: Florian Botto, Monaco; Sergio Carvalho, Portugal; Tidiani Couma, Monaco; and Stella Bartolini Cavicchi, World Ocean Council

On Monday, 10 July, the fourth session of the Preparatory Committee on the elements of a draft text of 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 with the plenary addressing administrative matters and hearing general statements. In the afternoon, the informal working group on marine genetic resources (MGRs), facilitated by Janine Coye-Felson (Belize), convened to discuss scope, guiding principles and approaches, access and benefit-sharing. 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 the 4th Session of the Preparatory Committee Established by the UN General Assembly Resolution 69/292: Development of 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. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Franz Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil Miguel de Serpa Soares, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and UN Legal Counsel, on behalf of UN Secretary-General António Guterres Miguel de Serpa Soares, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and UN Legal Counsel, giving his opening address to PrepCom4 L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS); Miguel de Serpa Soares, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and UN Legal Counsel; Chair Carlos Sobral Duarte, Brazil; Alice Hicuburundi, UNDOALOS; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS Alice Revell, New Zealand Jane Chigiyal, Federated States of Micronesia Horacio Sevilla-Borja, Ecuador, on behalf of the G-77/China Sergey Leonidchenko, Russian Federation Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group John Brincat, EU Marlene Moses, Nauru, on behalf of the Pacific Small Island Developing States Teodoro Locsin Jr., the Philippines Ma Xinmin, China Ismail Raushan, Maldives, on behalf of Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Pablo Arrocha Olabuenaga, Mexico Evan Bloom, US, making an intervention Faiyaz Murshid Kazi, Bangladesh Matthías Pálsson, Iceland Michael Googan, Australia Cristóbal Hernández Castillo, Chile Juliette Babb-Riley, Barbados, on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Rishy Bukoree, Mauritius Alain Tellier, Canada Florian Botto, Monaco Carlos García Reyes, Guatemala Kathryn Garforth, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Louise Kantrow, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Ariel Hernán Troisi, Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) -UNESCO Kristina Gjerde, IUCN Stefan Micallef, International Maritime Organization Takehiro Nakamura, UN Environment Peggy Kalas, High Seas Alliance Gustavo Arévalo Castro, Comisión Permanente del Pacifico Sur (CPPS) L-R: Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS); Janine Coye-Felson, Belize, Facilitator of the informal working group on marine genetic resources; and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS James Ndirangu Waweru, Kenya Konrad Marciniak, EU Rogelio Villanueva Jr., the Philippines Delegates from the Federated States of Micronesia and Nauru consulting L-R: Ma Xinmin, China, in a conversation with Evan Bloom, US Delegates from the African Group

The eighteenth meeting of the UN Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea (ICP-18) opened on 15 May 2017 at the UN Headquarters in New York, under the theme: “The effects of climate change on oceans.” In the morning, delegates heard opening remarks from: Co-Chairs Gustavo Meza-Cuadra and Kornelios Korneliou; Stephen Mathias, Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs; Thomas Gass, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), on behalf of Wu Hongbo, UN DESA; Shifaana Thowfeequ, Office of the High Representative for Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS), on behalf of Acting Under-Secretary General Heidi Schroderus-Fox; Peter Thomson, President of the UN General Assembly; and Co-Chairs of the Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole (AHWGW) Juliette Babb-Riley and Carolyn Schwalger. In the afternoon, Co-Chair Korneliou introduced the informal session, a discussion panel on “the effects of climate change on oceans, including environmental, social and economic implications.” Delegates heard presentations on: findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report and preparations for the Sixth Assessment; ecosystem services and climate change, including thermal adaptation; climate projections and predictions: challenges and possible solutions; the effects of climate change on the coasts of a highly vulnerable and Megadiverse Country: the case of Colombia; effects of climate change on the oceans (via webcast); and oceanic impacts on regional climate and the Argo Programme. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, is providing daily web coverage and a summary and analysis report in English and French from the 18th Meeting of the UN Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page View of the dais Co-Chair Kornelios Korneliou, Cyprus Peter Thomson, President of the UN General Assembly Thomas Gass, Assistant Secretary-General, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) Shifaana Thowfeequ, UN Office of the High Representative for Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS) Stephen Mathias, Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs Co-Chair Gustavo Meza-Cuadra, Peru Juliette Babb-Riley, Co-Chair, Ad Hoc Working Group of the Whole (AHWGW) Margo Deiye, Nauru, on behalf of Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS) Carmen Mifsud, Malta, speaking for the EU Carolyn Schwalger, Co-Chair, AHWGW Diedre Mills, Jamaica Isaías Medina Mejías, Venezuela Andi Eka Sakya, Indonesia Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Luis Oña Garcés, Ecuador, on behalf of the G-77/China Lucía Raffin, Argentina Tevita Suka Mangisi, Tonga Sesselja Sigurðardóttir, Iceland Kate Neilson, New Zealand Luke Daunivalu, Fiji Delegates from Indonesia Presentations View of the panel during the afternoon session Ko Barrett, Vice-Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Françoise Gaill, Committee for Marine and Coastal Research, France Fangli Qiao, Government Secretary General and Deputy Director General, First Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, China Philip Sutton, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, New Zealand Francisco Armando Arias Isaza, Institute of Marine Research, Colombia Elva Escobar Briones, National Autonomous University of Mexico, talked about the effects of climate change on the oceans (via webcast) Around the Venue Sphere Within a Sphere, by Arnaldo Pomodoro Non-Violence, by Fredrik Reuterswärd A view of Long Island City, Queens from the UN Headquarters