D. Avgerinopoulou appointed as Special Envoy for the Oceans

The Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic and President of New Democracy Party, Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Dionysia-Theodora Avgerinopoulou, MP, as Special Envoy for the Ocean. Dr. Avgerinopoulou will be serving as coordinator of the 9th Our Ocean Conference, scheduled to take place in Athens, Greece, from April 15th to 17th, 2024.
“Our Ocean Conference”, which was first organized in 2014, is an initiative by the U.S. Department of State and the Secretary John Kerry. The 9th Our Ocean Conference (OOC-9) is expected to consider ways of addressing the impacts of climate change, over-fishing and pollution of the seas. Within the Conference six (6) Areas of Action will be addressed: Marine Protected Areas; Sustainable blue economy; Climate-ocean nexus; Maritime security; Sustainable fisheries; Marine pollution, while Greece will underscore four horizontal elements cutting across the six areas of action of the Conference: (i) sustainable tourism in coastal areas and islands, (ii) green shipping, (iii) reduction of marine plastic and microplastic pollution, (iv) the green transition in the Mediterranean.

Dr. Dionysia-Theodora Avgerinopoulou, Member of the Parliament, Chair of the Special Permanent Committee on Environmental Protection and the Subcommittee on the Water Resources, has also served as Chair of Water of the Energy and Environment Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce; Chair of the Circle of the Mediterranean Parliamentarians on Sustainable Development; Vice-Chair of the Steering Committee of the Global Water Partnership Organization; and Vice-Chair of the Mediterranean Commission of Sustainable Development of UNEP/MAP. She has also been presented with the “Green Star” Award by UNEP/OCHA. Dr. Avgerinopoulou holds a Doctorate Degree in International Environmental Law, focusing on the protection of the marine environment and climate change.