Background

Kristina Gjerde has extensive experience in international marine law and policy and is a frequent advisor to governments, international organizations and NGOs, including IUCN, the High Seas Alliance and the Global Ocean Commission. Ms Gjerde has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications on fisheries, shipping, law of the sea and marine biodiversity conservation issues. To help build bridges between science, law and policy, Ms Gjerde has co-founded five pioneering partnerships:  the Deep Ocean Stewardship Initiative, the High Seas Alliance, the Sargasso Sea Alliance, the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative, and the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition. She also holds an adjunct professorship at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey where she teaches international marine environmental law and policy. She received her law degree from New York University School of Law.