Election of geologist Luísa Pinto Ribeiro to the Legal and Technical Commission of the International Seabed Authority

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The Council of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), based in Kingston, Jamaica, elected Dr. Luísa Pinto Ribeiro, geologist and member of the team of the Portuguese Task Group for the Extension of the Continental Shelf (EMEPC), to the Technical and Legal Commission of the ISA, reinforcing Portugal's commitment to the Ocean affairs both nationally and internationally. 

 

The election was held in late August and elected 41 members of different nationalities for a five-year term beginning January 1, 2023. (1)

Although candidate members of the Commission are nominated by ISA member states, the newly elected members serve on the Commission independently and within the scope of their technical and scientific knowledge and capabilities.

 

The ISA is a United Nations body composed of 167 Member States and the European Union. Its mandate is framed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, to organize, regulate and control the activities of exploration and exploitation of mineral resources occurring in the seabed beyond the jurisdiction of coastal states (defined as the Area) and considered as Common Heritage of Humankind. The ISA also has the duty to ensure the effective protection of the marine environment from the harmful effects that may result from activities in the Area. (2)

 

The Commission to which the Portuguese geologist was elected is an advisory body to the ISA Council, with responsibility for the creation of regulations and procedures on the exploration and exploitation of mineral resources, the development of environmental management plans and the review of work plans currently underway in the Area.

 

 

(1) https://www.isa.org.jm/node/21475
(2) https://www.isa.org.jm/home
(3) https://www.isa.org.jm/authority/legal-and-technical-commission

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