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OCEAN GOVERNANCE | 31

Andrew Heinrich
PhD from Harvard Law School
and MPhil from Oxford University

How can the law be adapted, but also created What can be done to speed up the process of
from scratch, for the changing circumstances adapting the Law of the Sea?
and innovations in the world of marine conser- From a domestic point of view, we have some parti-
vation? cularly interesting laboratories. We need to allow la-
Whenever there is technical innovation, we must boratories to continue increasing experiments and
question whether the law can adapt or whether a provide them with financial means to enable coun-
new legal framework is needed. This is in fact, a tries to experiment more in their domestic sphere.
very old legal issue! Initially, the law must adapt, but From an international standpoint, the High Seas
there comes a time when adaptation is not enough. Treaty has solved a very difficult problem, namely
It is therefore necessary to determine the precise cross-border legislation. This represents a huge
point at which new legal concepts need to be de- opportunity for further steps. We need to continue
veloped. with these international adaptations, such as the
I think that to improve the way we protect the seas, idea of sharing responsibility for the sea between
innovations in the national sphere need to be ex- several countries, as is the case for Argentina and
ported more often at an international level, as seen Uruguay, Mauritius, and the Seychelles, or in the
with the unique situation of blue bonds in the Sey- Arctic, where new treaties involving the indigenous
chelles, which are themselves inspired by a dozen peoples are being negotiated.
other initiatives around the world.
Is there a way of creating a law of the sea that
Does indigenous law have a particular role to can adapt to future innovations?
play? There will always be a delay between the develop-
Apart from the fact that they are the first to be affec- ment of new technology and the law that governs
ted by changes in the marine environment and the it. Was aircraft regulated before it was made? The
decline in fish stocks, indigenous peoples have real question of creating legal structures in new fields
expertise in the seas, based on centuries of expe- is an area of great interest to me. We all live in a
rience in their territory. And we need to apply it as if post-covid world: preparing for something that
it were scientific expertise. seems impossible is a realistic prospect.
If we consult indigenous peoples and map out local However, this raises the question of how the law
expertise, our decisions will be more in line with the can be used to spark innovation. We know that the
local and global situation. Through this approach, ocean requires a certain level of carbon sequestra-
we can create a shared history that connects in- tion, a reduction in pH. The law can be an asset to
digenous communities and the global community. achieve this.
This is an essential step in improving our understan-
ding of the ocean.