The Max Planck Foundation welcomed Fellows from the ITLOS-Nippon Foundation Capacity-Building and Training Programme on Dispute Settlement under UNCLOS.
On 9-11 December 2025, eight Nippon Fellows attended a discussion series workshop at the Foundation premises in Heidelberg. As a well-established tradition, this activity forms part of the Capacity-Building and Training Programme on Dispute Settlement under the Law of the Sea Convention, run by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in cooperation with the Nippon Foundation.
The Nippon Fellows are junior-mid level government officials and researchers from around the world. The discussion series was therefore aimed at building and developing their capacity in legal research and writing as well as knowledge in diverse areas of ocean governance. This aims to assist the Fellows in the conduct of their researching and writing of a law of the sea thesis as part of their Programme. Participants had an open discussion on challenges in conducting legal research and each Fellow presented their preliminary research for feedback.
Foundation staff provided diverse law of the sea related presentations as well as a presentation of the work of the Foundation, including its maritime governance projects, past and present. Cornell Overfield (CAN) kindly joined the programme as a guest speaker, offering personal insights on navigation and maritime delimitation in the Arctic region.
The Foundation looks forward to continued cooperation and welcoming the next batch of ITLOS-Nippon Fellows in 2026.