Researchers' Activities

6 Oct Danielle Yeow moderated at the seminar on The United Nations Climate Regime Thirty Years On — A Retrospective and Assessment by Professor Daniel Bodansky

4 Oct Moderated roundtable dialogue, CIL-DU-UNFCCC workshop on climate change, oceans and the global stocktake 

3 October 2022: CIL Director Dr Nilüfer Oral was Invited to Speak at a Panel at Oslo 3^rd International Environmental Law Conference.

EPISODE SUMMARY

The law of the sea convention adopted by the UN in 1982 defines the economic and political sea boundaries critical to small island states, but the rights it guarantees are threatened by rising sea levels. In this episode, we talk to Dr. Nilufar Oral, Director of the Center for International Law at the National University of Singapore and Co-Chair of the UN’s sea level rise study group, on how vulnerable states are advocating for updated protections.

SCF

24 September 2022: CIL Director Dr Nilüfer Oral Was Invited to Deliver a Keynote Speech at IFLOS Maritime Talks 2022.

The online conference was organized by the Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) and the Faculty of Law of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) of Indonesia and held via zoom.

The title of the conference was “International Symposium on Ocean Governance, Environmental Rights and Sustainable Development in the Anthropocene”.

21 September 2022: CIL Director Dr Nilüfer Oral Was Invited to Participate in the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) Informal, Focused Consultation on Legal Matters

Yulu Liu and Cheng Ling Lim and Youna Lyons from CIL Ocean Law and Policy Programme presented at the 7th International Marine Debris Conference (7IMDC), held in Busan South Korea, 18-23 September 2022. 

Danielle Yeow spoke at the ICRC-CIL-SRC 1st Singapore International Humanitarian Law Roundtable on Technologies of Warfare and International Humanitarian Law (biological weapons)

12-16 September 2022: CIL Director Dr Nilüfer Oral Was Invited to Speak at the ITLOS Workshop for Legal Advisors in Hamburg

8 September 2022: CIL Director Dr Nilüfer Oral was Invited to Speak at the Asia-Pacific Online Session on International Humanitarian Law Session – ARMED CONFLICT AND THE PROTECTION OF THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT Organized by the International Committee of the Red Cross

It was held over two days on Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 September as an online meeting. Day Two of the Seminar was moderated by Gillian Grant, the Chair of the Legal Committee of the IMO. Prof Beckman spoke in Panel 5: Operating MASS: Legal issues related to communication and enforcement.

7 September 2022: CIL Director Dr Nilüfer Oral and Prof Patricia Galvao Teles were Invited to Give a Presentation on the Work of the International Law Commission to Participants at the Centre for Studies & Research Program at The Hague Academy.

The Programme, co-organised by the Republic of Singapore Navy and S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, introduced various aspects of maritime security for maritime practitioners. The course’s participants are navies, coastguards, and other maritime practitioners from around the world. Prof. Beckman delivered a lecture about the international law of the sea while Dr. Dang presented about Vietnam’s measures against IUU Fishing.

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).

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.

The Workshop introduced the results of the Common Fisheries Resources Analysis of skipjack tuna in the South China Sea, a joint research initiative implemented by scientists from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Viet Nam with support from the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue.

Independent Global Stocktake

1 Sept 2022 | Speaker, “Path to 1.5 degrees – Implementation and Implication”, AGC Academy to Legal Branch officers

Senior Research Fellow Dr. Tara Davenport was invited to participate (online) in the Expert Group Meeting on Enforcement Related Issues in Deep Sea Mining organized by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the Secretariat of the International Seabed Authority (ISA)

Convened by Manila Observatory in partnership with Samdhana Institute and Chiang Mai University on 22-25 August 2022

The Fellowship, organised by the Cybersecurity Agency of Singapore and the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, is the flagship programme under the UN-Singapore Cyber Programme. 

The Workshop was organised by the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies and S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University.

Senior Research Fellow Dr. Tara Davenport was invited to give a lecture on ‘Cyberspace and International Law’ at the 2022 inaugural UN-Singapore Cyber Fellowship Programme from 1 – 6 August 2022 in Singapore.

CIL Research Associate Brian Chang and former Research Assistant Tensin Studer presented a conference paper on “What Investor-State Mediation Can Learn from UNCLOS Conciliation: Lessons from the Timor Sea Conciliation” at the Junior Scholars Workshop of the Asian Society for International Law (AsianSIL)’s 2022 Regional Conference in Nepal, co-organised by CIL’s Teaching and Researching International Law in Asia (TRILA) team. 

The Workshop is a part of this year’s Nepal Regional Conference by Asian Society of International Law.

The Conference was organised by the United Nations Environment Programme, Viet Nam Administration of Seas and Islands – Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Australian Centre for Ocean Resources and Security – University of Wollongong, Centre for International Law of Sea and Maritime Law – National University of Viet Nam in Hanoi.

Dr Oral was invited to present a paper at a conference on Sea Level Rise and International Law: Assessing its Impacts on the Americas during the 73rd Session of the International Law Commission (ILC).

Prof Beckman was one of 10 speakers in Session III. In his presentation he argued the COC should contain a “non-prejudice” clause similar to that in Article VII of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty. He argued that such a clause would enable the parties to cooperate on matters of common interest without being seen as either acquiescing to or recognizing the legitimacy of the sovereignty and maritime claims of other States or as renouncing or giving up their own sovereignty claims and maritime claims in the South China Sea.

The global community has failed to stop biodiversity loss, and people do not realise the impact of this persistent trend, warns veteran diplomat, law professor and environmentalist Tommy Koh.

Senior Research Fellow Dr. Tara Davenport gave an online lecture on 19 July 2022 submarine cables and pipelines at the Kadir Has International Law of the Sea Academy held in Turkey from 18 to 29 July 2022.

The workshop is part of one of Ateneo Law School’s longest traditions, i.e., the Introduction to Law (ITL) programme for incoming law students.

Senior Research Fellow Dr. Tara Davenport presented at the 2022 IUCN Academy of Environmental Law Colloquium on ‘Common Heritage of Humankind (CHH) as a basis for Environmental Governance’ on 13 July 2022.

The Faculty at the Rhodes Academy is comprised of leading experts in the law of the sea, including current and past judges from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). The Faculty in 2022 included two current ITLOS judges, Albert Hoffman of South Africa, the current President and Judge Tomas Heider of Iceland as well as two former Presidents of ITLOS – Rudiger Wolfrum of Germany and Vladimir Golitsyn of the Russian Federation.

The title of Dr Nilufer’s lecture is “Climate Change and Sea Level Rise: The Activities of the ILC”

The title of his presentation was “Reduction of Emissions from Commercial Shipping: The Global Context and Singapore Initiatives”.

At a panel on “Global Law on Pandemic Prevention”, Ayelet Berman spoke on “The international Law and Governance of One Health”. She presented the preliminary findings of the work of the International Law Association Steering Committee on One Health, of which she is a member.

Jiang Zhifeng, a double degree law student at Yale-NUS College and the National University of Singapore (NUS) have been awarded the Koh Han Kok Prize. Best student in Public International Law.

Dr Nilufer Oral spoke at the session on Climate Change and Ocean Governance focusing on “Challenges of Sea Level Rise for the Law of the Sea and the Work of the International Law Commission”

Dawoon made a presentation on “New Technology and Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS): How Does UNCLOS Evolve to Regulate the Impacts of MASS on the Marine Environment?”.

She made a presentation on ‘Enforcement of Coastal State Jurisdiction over Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing in the Exclusive Economic Zone,’ and provided a case study on Indonesia.

Dr Oral moderated at the session: International Law and Current Challenges: Sea-Level Rise on 22 June 2022. She was also one of the panellists at the session: Biodiversity in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction on 23 June 2022.

Youna, Cheng Ling and Yulu’s presentation was on intervention policies and regulations on single-use plastics restrictions in the ASEAN +3 region and their effectiveness.

Dr Nilufer Oral was one of the panellists at the session “Bringing Climate Change Before International Courts and Tribunals”

Participants (from public and private sector and academia/think tanks) had a robust and engaging discussion on the cyber and hybrid threat lessons from the Russia/Ukraine crisis, and the misinformation threat landscape in the South East Asian region.

Prof Beckman spoke on the role of the dispute settlement system in clarifying ambiguous provisions and responding to technological developments.

Dr Oral spoke at Side Event 7: The Role of Global Networks Of Legal Experts And Practitioners To Assist In Designing And Implementing Legal Responses To Address The Triple Planetary Crisis.

The dialogue contributes to the Sea East Asia region’s contribution to promoting climate – ocean dialogues and follows up on PEMSEA’s country partners’ reaffirmation of their commitment to the blue economy and support global efforts to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement with mitigation and adaptation as crucial underlying principles in accelerating the blue economy.

Dr Oral spoke at the session on “Rising Sea Levels: The Role of International Organizations”.