Jihyun Lee serves as the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
She brings over 25 years of experience with the United Nations system—including 15 years with the CBD Secretariat/United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), three years with the International Seabed Authority, and seven years with the International Maritime Organisation/ Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA)—alongside nine years of working as a senior policy researcher at the national government of the Republic of Korea. Her expertise spans sustainable development, biodiversity conservation, environmental management, and integrated ocean and coastal governance, including the management of the marine environment, biodiversity, and mineral resources beyond national jurisdiction.
From March 2022 until her current appointment, she served as Director (D1) of the Division of Science, Society and Sustainable Futures at the CBD Secretariat. Prior to that, she was Director (D1) of the Office of Environmental Management and Mineral Resources at the International Seabed Authority from January 2019 to March 2022.
She has extensive experience supporting intergovernmental processes, having served as Meeting Secretary for the Conference of the Parties to the CBD, the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA), and the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. Since 2007, she has also actively contributed to the international negotiations on biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ).
Staff Position Level: D1
Region: Asia Pacific Group
