Katharina Heinrich

Katharina Heinrich is a researcher with a background in Polar Law and Coastal and Marine Management. Her work focuses primarily on ocean governance and marine biodiversity conservation in the Polar regions and Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ). She will join the Belfer Center as a Arctic Initiative Fellow for the 2025-2026 term.

Since 2021, she has been working at the Arctic Centre, University of Lapland, concentrating on Arctic ocean governance and marine biodiversity conservation. Katharina’s contributions include involvement in the Central Arctic Ocean Synthesis Report (CAO-SR) under the Arctic Council PAME Working Group, as well as EU-funded projects addressing marine pollution and transboundary cooperation for biodiversity conservation in the Arctic.

Currenlty pursuing a PhD in Interdisciplinary Environmental Sciences at the University of Helsinki, her doctoral research investigates a threshold-based approach to advance marine management in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ), with a specific case study in the Arctic Ocean. She has presented her work at numerous conferences and seminars and has participated in workshops organized by the Future of Arctic Law and Governance (FALG) research network. 

At the Arctic Initiative, Katharina will continue her research on marine management in the Arctic, seeking solutions to advancing current marine management approaches for effective conservation and governance in this rapidly changing region.