S'pore's oceans ambassador Rena Lee on Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people

Ambassador for Singapore's Oceans and Law of the Sea Issues Rena Lee has been named one of Time magazine's top 100 most influential people.

- Leow Wen Xuan

"With calm dignity, determination and grace, Lee successfully led deliberations to legally protect biodiversity within the blue heart of the planet, the cornerstone of earth's life-support system," the publication said on April 17.

"We all should applaud her heroic moves, breaking decades of deadlock over governance of human actions that impact not just the future of tunas, sharks, squids and whales, but that of all of life on earth - humans included," it added.

As Singapore's Ambassador for Oceans and Law of the Sea Issues and Special Envoy of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mrs Lee had helped broker the high seas treaty, a historic agreement that lays the groundwork for international collaboration to protect the areas outside of national jurisdictions.

Also known as the Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement, it was a treaty more than 15 years in the making, including over four years of formal talks.