On April 16, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, gave a statement during the Organizational Meeting for the Intergovernmental Conference on 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.  

In his intervention, Archbishop Auza said that all peoples and governments have a common imperative to protect and preserve our planet. He noted that commercial activity with regard to using the seas and marine life in areas beyond national jurisdiction will likely increase exponentially in coming years. There is a need to draft a legally-binding instrument with regard to them that balances human need and economic interests on the one hand with environmental protection and sustainable use on the other. He said that it’s important to have a clearer delineation among the meaning, purpose and commercial application of the terms “conversation” and “sustainable use,” as well as a more vigorous responsibilities-based approach with regard to States and commercial parties.

His intervention can be found here.