The Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) Mr. Michael Lodge is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Jihyun Lee, of the Republic of Korea as Director of the Office of Environmental Management and Mineral Resources (OEMMR).
Ms. Lee is the first woman, and Korean national to be appointed as a Director at ISA. She brings with her over 18 years of United Nations experience and nine years in national government in the fields of sustainable ocean development, conservation of marine biodiversity, integrated ocean and coastal governance, and marine environmental protection.
Prior to joining ISA, Ms. Lee coordinated the implementation of the Programme of Work on marine and coastal biodiversity at the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), a position she assumed in March 2007. Most notably, she implemented the global process of describing ecologically or biologically significant marine areas (EBSAs) in more than 74 per cent of world ocean areas, including marine areas beyond national jurisdiction.
Announcing the appointment today, the Secretary-General highlighted his ongoing commitment to enhancing ISA’s role in global ocean governance.
“Ms. Lee’s track record at the CBD made her a stand-out candidate for the role, from a very strong field.” said Mr. Lodge.
“Her appointment as Director of the Office of Environmental Management and Mineral Resources underlines ISA’s emphasis on the importance of sound environmental management as a key priority for the Authority in the coming years,” he said.
Since 2015, Ms. Lee has initiated and organized the SOI Global Dialogues with Regional Seas Organizations and Regional Fisheries Bodies, together with various UN and international organizations.
From July 2000 to February 2007, she served as the Senior Programme Officer for Integrated Coastal Management at the GEF/UNDP/IMO Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA). Ms. Lee also served as the Senior Policy Researcher at the Korea Maritime Institute (1997-2000) and the Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute (1991-1997).
Ms. Lee will take up her assignment in late January 2019. Other appointments at ISA this month include Ms. Marie Bourrel-McKinnon, Senior Policy Officer and Special Assistant to the Secretary-General and Ms. Katie Elles, Communications Specialist.
Ms. Jihyun Lee
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For media enquiries, please contact:
Ms. Katie Elles, Communications Specialist, International Seabed Authority M: +1 (876) 835 3801/ E: kelles@isa.org.jm
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ISBA/PR/2018/051 14 November 2018, Kingston, Jamaica