MARIA GAVOUNELI

Professor of International Law

LL.B. (Honours) (Athens); LL.M. (Cantab); Ph.D. (Cantab) (Paul Guggenheim Prize)

Professor of International Law, Faculty of Law; Director, LLM in International & European Law, Faculty of Law; Deputy Director, Athens Public International Law Center – Athens PIL, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens

Director, Refugee & Migration Studies Hub – RMS Hub, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens

Chevalière de la Légion d'honneur

Member of the Board of Directors, Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy – ELIAMEP, 2025-2027; Director General, 2023-2025

OECD Centre for Population Dynamics, inaugural Chair of the Expert Advisory Board, 2023-

Member, National Foreign Policy Council, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic

Associate, Hellenic Institute of International & Foreign Law; Chief examiner, Postgraduate Laws – LWM34, University of London; Associate Research Fellow, Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London (2005-2019)

ORCID id: 0000-0002-4509-9513; coordinator and member of major research teams funded by European and Greek resources; recipient of multiple research grants: Aristeia II, ELIDEK, COST, Jean Monnet; research impact: Google Scholar h-index 12 | i10-index 13; ResearchGate: total research interest: 185,7 | h-index: 6; Web of Science Researcher ID: AAL-6043-2021, h-index: 3; Scopus id: 6507238501 | h-index: 4

Fulbright Visiting Scholar 2018-2019 at the University of California Berkeley; Visiting professor and lecturer in several universities and research institutions in Greece and abroad, including The Hague Academy of International Law, Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), Tulane University (USA), the University of Edinburgh (Brodies Lecture), the University of Oxford, the University of Glasgow, the University of Manchester, Utrecht University, the University of Ankara, Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne, Université Paris 2 Panthéon Assas, the NUS Academy of International Law, Académie de la Mer – Monaco.

Member of several academic organisations, including the British Institute of International & Comparative Law (visiting researcher, 2000); the American Society of International Law (co-chair of the Law of the Sea Interest Group – LOSIG, 2012-2015); the European Society of International Law (co-convenor of the Interest Group on the Law of the Sea – LAWSEA, 2014-2020); the Association internationale du droit de la mer (AssIDMer); the Hellenic Society of International Law & International Relations (Vice-chair); the Hellenic Arbitration Association

International Law Association, Global President (2024-2026); Executive Council (2021-); ILA Hellenic Branch, President (2018-2025); Committee on submarine cables and pipelines, nominee of the Chair (2018-); Committee on international law and sea-level rise (2013-2024); Committee on the legal principles relating to climate change, member and co-author of the 2014 Washington Declaration on the legal principles relating to climate change (2010-2014); Committee on transnational enforcement of environmental law, co-rapporteur (2005-2006)

Author of six monographs, including Pollution from offshore installations (Martinus Nijhoff 1995 – Prix Paul Guggenheim), State immunity and the rule of law (Athens 2001), Functional jurisdiction in the Law of the Sea (Martinus Nijhoff, 2007); Energy installations at sea (Nomiki Vivliothiki, 2016 – in Greek); Energy at Sea (Edward Elgar, forthcoming); Energy and international Law, RCADI (forthcoming); editor of several volumes; multiple chapters in books and numerous articles; co-editor-in-chief: Yearbook of International Environmental Law; board member in multiple journals

Greek National Commission of Human Rights, President, 2019-2022, 2022-2026; Bureau member, European Network of National Human Rights Institutions – ENNHRI (2016-2022); Bureau member, Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions – GANHRI (2019-2022); alternate member, Sub-Committee on Accreditation, UN OHCHR (2022-2024); Member, National Accessibility Authority

National Transparency Authority, member of the Management Board (2020-2023); OECD, Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions, Vice-President (2005-2013), member of the Management Group (2014-2021) and lead examiner; Council of Europe, Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO), Head of delegation (since 2006) and examiner; UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), contact point for Greece (2007-2009), evaluator; National Coordinator for combatting corruption, Advisory Body (2014-2015); European Commission, Expert Group on Corruption (2011-2020)

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic, National Foreign Policy Council, 2024-

Delegate of the Hellenic Republic in the General Assembly of the United Nations (Third Committee); The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Chair and member in numerous committees of the Council of Europe, including the Steering Committee on Criminal Matters (CDPC), member of the Bureau (2007-2011); Steering Group of the Pan-European Platform on Ethics, Transparency and Integrity in Education – ETINED (2016-2019)

President, Committee of Article 36 (CATS), Council of the European Union (Justice & Home Affairs) (2003, 2013)

Delegate and negotiator in numerous bilateral and multilateral treaties, including treaties with the USA, the Russian Federation, Canada, the Ukraine, Mexico, Brazil, Iran and Armenia; Advisor to the Hellenic Ministry of Justice, member of several legislative drafting committees

Attorney-at-law, Athens Bar; Managing Partner, Gavouneli Micha Law Firm

Arbitrator under ICC rules, other domestic rules and Greek law; counsel, legal advisor and consultant in energy and environmental matters; arbitrator and STD expert under multiple EU trade agreements; arbitrator with the Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAE) and the European Organization for Arbitration and Mediation (EODID)

Fluent in Greek (native language), English, French, Italian and Spanish; comfortable with German

Full CV here

e-mail: mgavoun@law.uoa.gr