Youna Lyons was invited to observe the 49th GESAMP annual session held at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) headquarters in London, United Kingdom, from 5 to 9 September 2022, on the delegation of Advisory Committee on the Protection of the Sea Advisory Committee (ACOPS). The meeting was attended by several sponsoring organisations of GESAMP, including the IMO, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO-IOC), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the FAO (Food Agriculture Organisation), the ISA (International Seabed Authority), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and most of GESAMP permanent members. The status of work of the different Working Groups (WGs) was reported and the future strategy and programme of action was discussed. Youna had already been invited to become a member of WG44 on Biofouling Management with an emphasis on its role as a vector for the transfer of invasive species.

Yulu Liu also attended the workshop of GESAMP WG 40 (as a representative of ACOPS) to develop a risk assessment framework for land and sea-based sources of marine litter and microplastics, which was held in Busan, South Korea from 26-30 October.