For the purposes of this Agreement:

1. “Area-based management tool” means a tool, including a marine protected area, for a geographically defined area through which one or several sectors or activities are managed with the aim of achieving particular conservation and sustainable use objectives in accordance with this Agreement.

2. “Areas beyond national jurisdiction” means the high seas and the Area.

3. “Biotechnology” means any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use.

4. “Collection in situ”, in relation to marine genetic resources, means the collection or sampling of marine genetic resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction.

5. “Convention” means the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982.

6. “Cumulative impacts” means the combined and incremental impacts resulting from different activities, including known past and present and reasonably foreseeable activities, or from the repetition of similar activities over time, and the consequences of climate change, ocean acidification and related impacts.

7. “Environmental impact assessment” means a process to identify and evaluate the potential impacts of an activity to inform decision-making.

8. “Marine genetic resources” means any material of marine plant, animal, microbial or other origin containing functional units of heredity of actual or potential value.

9. “Marine protected area” means a geographically defined marine area that is designated and managed to achieve specific long-term biological diversity conservation objectives and may allow, where appropriate, sustainable use provided it is consistent with the conservation objectives.

10. “Marine technology” includes, inter alia, information and data, provided in a user- friendly format, on marine sciences and related marine operations and services; manuals, guidelines, criteria, standards and reference materials; sampling and methodology equipment; observation facilities and equipment for in situ and laboratory observations, analysis and experimentation; computer and computer software, including models and modelling techniques; related biotechnology; and expertise, knowledge, skills, technical, scientific and legal know-how and analytical methods related to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity.

11. “Party” means a State or regional economic integration organization that has consented to be bound by this Agreement and for which this Agreement is in force.

12. “Regional economic integration organization” means an organization constituted by sovereign States of a given region to which its member States have transferred competence in respect of matters governed by this Agreement and which has been duly authorized, in accordance with its internal procedures, to sign, ratify, approve, accept or accede to this Agreement.

13. “Sustainable use” means the use of components of biological diversity in a way and at a rate that does not lead to a long-term decline of biological diversity, thereby maintaining its potential to meet the needs and aspirations of present and future generations.

14. “Utilization of marine genetic resources” means to conduct research and development on the genetic and/or biochemical composition of marine genetic resources, including through the application of biotechnology, as defined in

paragraph 3

above.