Part I Assessing the UN Institutional Structure for Global Ocean Governance: The UN’s Role in Global Ocean Governance, 1 The Role of the United Nations, including its Secretariat in Global Ocean Governance

Abstract

This chapter examines the role of the United Nations and its related institutions for global ocean governance, including those established by the entry into force of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). It first considers the main issues that these institutions have addressed, ranging from sustainable fisheries, via ecosystem protection, to marine biodiversity conservation; and more recently, maritime security. It then argues that the impacts of climate change have arguably not been directly addressed by either the global ocean governance regime, as it is currently constituted, nor by the climate change regime, at least until recent developments through the 2015 Paris Agreement relating to adaptation and mitigation measures in direct response to sea-level rise and the effects of ocean acidification. The chapter proceeds by discussing UNCLOS and its related legal instruments, UN Conferences and Summit on sustainable development, and the role played by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in global ocean governance.