Michael W. Lodge is a British lawyer who served as Secretary-General of the

International Seabed Authority The International Seabed Authority (ISA; ) is a Kingston, Jamaica-based intergovernmental body of 167 member states and the European Union. It was established under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and its 1994 Agreement o ...

from 2016 to 2024.

Education

Lodge studied law at the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a Public university, public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus university, campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and twenty-six schools of ...

and was later awarded a Master of Science degree in marine policy from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

. He was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in London.

Career

Lodge worked as a legal counsel for the

Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency The Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) is an intergovernmental agency established in 1979 to facilitate regional co-operation and co-ordination on fisheries policies between its member states in order to achieve conservation and optimum u ...

(1991–1995) and the

(1996–2003), and as counselor for the

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; , OCDE) is an international organization, intergovernmental organization with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and international trade, wor ...

Roundtable on Sustainable Development (2004–2007). He was a lead negotiator for the South Pacific island states for the 1995 United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement and has worked as a consultant on fisheries and environmental and international law. In 2016 Lodge succeeded Nii Allotey Odunton as Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority, having served as Deputy to the Secretary-General and Legal Counsel since 2011.International Seabed Authority, The Secretary-General
Retrieved 20 August 2024. He was re-elected for a second four-year term in 2020, but was unsuccessful in his bid to secure a third term, losing to the Brazilian oceanographer

Leticia Carvalho Leticia Reis de Carvalho (born 1973) is a Brazilian oceanographer who has served as Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority since 1 January 2025. Early life and education Born in Rio de Janeiro, in 1973, Carvalho grew up in Bras ...

in the election held in August 2024. Lodge had been criticised for pushing for industrial

deep sea mining Deep sea mining is the extraction of minerals from the seabed of the deep sea. The main ores of commercial interest are polymetallic nodules, which are found at depths of primarily on the abyssal plain. The Clarion–Clipperton zone (CCZ) a ...

to begin before formal regulations were in place. Lodge held appointments as an associate fellow of

Chatham House The Royal Institute of International Affairs, also known as Chatham House, is a British think tank based in London, England. Its stated mission is "to help governments and societies build a sustainably secure, prosperous, and just world". It ...

in London (2007), a visiting fellow of

Somerville College, Oxford Somerville College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. It began admitting men in 1994. The colle ...

(2012–2013), and a member of the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental organization, international advocacy non-governmental organization and think tank, based in Cologny, Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German ...

global agenda council on oceans (2011–2016). He is also the author of over 25 books and articles on the

law of the sea Law of the sea (or ocean law) is a body of international law governing the rights and duties of State (polity), states in Ocean, maritime environments. It concerns matters such as navigational rights, sea mineral claims, and coastal waters juris ...

and oceans policy. In 2020 Lodge was recognised as an International Gender Champion.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Alumni of the University of East Anglia Alumni of the London School of Economics Members of Gray's Inn Fellows of Somerville College, Oxford International Seabed Authority people {{UK-bio-stub