Information for participants (meeting 28 April-2 May 2008):

Co-Chairpersons |  Format and agenda  |  UN-Grounds Passes | Side events | Secretariat |

-Co-Chairpersons

On February 2008, His Excellency Mr. Srgjan Kerim, the President of the sixty-second session of the United Nations General Assembly, in consultation with delegations, appointed Ambassador Robert Hill (Australia) and Ambassador Juan Manuel Gómez Robledo (Mexico) as the Co-Chairpersons of the upcoming meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group to study issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction (the Working Group), to be held at United Nations Headquarters in New York, from 28 April - 2 May 2008.

-Format and draft annotated agenda

The text of the Format and draft annotated agenda, including the organization of work, were prepared by the Co-Chairpersons to aid delegations in preparing for the meeting of the Working Group.

-Side-events

Lunch-time Side-events

Pending final confirmation, the lunch time (1:15 to 2:45pm) side events slots have been filled as follows (titles of side events will be posted as they become available):

28 April 2008  (Conference room C)

(1) "Marine Bioprospecting - status, tools and resources" by UNU-IAS/UNESCO

(2) "Relationship between UNCLOS and the two Agreements" by H. E. Mr. Satya N. Nandan (CBE),  (event organized by the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Fiji) (Conference Room 6)

29 April 2008 (Conference room C)

(1) “Global Open Oceans and Deep-Sea Habitats (GOODS) Bioregional Classification” 

(2) "Governance of Marine Ecosystems and Uses in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction in the Context of Climate Change: Prospects and Challenges", by the Permanent Mission of South Africa and the Global Forum on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands (Conference Room 6)

30 April 2008

(1) “FAO's intergovernmental work on genetic resources, particularly with regard to multilateral benefit-sharing” by FAO (Conference Room C)

(2) "Introduction to the International Seabed Authority Endowment Fund for Collaborative Marine Scientific Research", ISA (Conference Room 5)

1 May 2008 (Conference room C)

“"Presentation of studies on regulatory and governance gaps in the international regime for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, and options for how they might be addressed, and related issues" by IUCN

-Participation

Meetings of the Working Group are open to all States Members of the United Nations and all parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, with others invited as observers in accordance with past practice of the United Nations. The meeting may be conducted in closed sessions, as appropriate.

Non-governmental organizations invited to attend the meeting of the Working Group must have consultative status with either the Economic and Social Council or be accredited to the roster of the Commission on Sustainable Development. For information on how to obtain such status, please follow the link to the NGO site of DESA.

-UN Grounds Passes (Intergovernmental and Non-governmental organizations)

The names and contact details of representatives of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations invited to attend the meeting of the Working Group should be communicated to DOALOS for issuance of grounds passes in order to have access to United Nations premises, where the meetings of the Working Group will be held. For the upcoming meeting of the Working Group, this information needs to be submitted to DOALOS (e-mail: doalos@un.org; fax: 212-963-5847).  

DOALOS will communicate directly to the non-governmental organization representatives the venue, date and time for pick-up of their UN grounds passes.

Press releases

Oceans and the law of the sea press releases

-Secretariat

The Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS), Office of Legal Affairs, carries out the secretariat functions for the meetings of the Working Group. The Director of DOALOS has designated two staff members as Secretary and Deputy Secretary of the meeting of the Working Group.