Arctic Frontiers side event - Can the High Seas Treaty Cure Arctic Governance?
On 29 January 2024, NCLOS researcher Endalew Lijalem Enyew will organize a side event at the Annual Arctic Frontiers Conference exploring this question.
The new global treaty on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (known as the BBNJ treaty or the High Seas treaty) was formally adopted in June 2023 and was opened for signature on 20 September 2023. As of today, 84 states have signed the treaty. While signature needs to be confirmed with ratification, this treaty signals enthusiasm for a multilateral success that stands in stark contrast to the current complex geopolitical juncture. The High Seas treaty contains detailed rules providing a global legal basis, inter alia, for the establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs), including in the Central Arctic Ocean (CAO), on environmental impact assessments (EIA), and the relationship of the treaty with other relevant instruments and bodies, both global and sectoral.
The side event will assess the potential ramifications of the High Seas treaty on the governance of the Arctic, particularly on the ability of the governance regimes to address the impacts of human activities on the Arctic Ocean in line with the ecosystem-based approach (EBA). The event will specifically explore the complexity that the new treaty adds to the governance of the Arctic Ocean, Area Based Management Tools/MPAs in the Arctic, EIA in the BBNJ treaty and its implications for management of the marine Arctic, Scientific advice and the science-policy interface, and how the BBNJ treaty interacts with other relevant regimes, frameworks, and institutions on the governance of Arctic Ocean. A great lineup of speakers including Lawson W. Brigham (Global fellow at the Wilson Centre), Vito De Lucia (Director of NCLOS), Gunnar Sander (Senior researcher at NIVA), Mario Acquarone (Deputy Secretary of AMAP), and Christian Prip (Senior Researcher at FNI) will speak at the event.
The Side Event will take place at Clarion Hotel the Edge, Tromsø, from 13:30 to 15:00. For detailed information about the event, read more on the Arctic Frontiers websites.