Global & National Plans

Greeting from
Executive Director

BudgetOrganization(Million Yen)

UN 2030 Agenda (SDGs)

National Land Development Plan (2015‐25)

UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction (Build Back Better)

5th Priority Plan for Social Infrastructure Development (2021‐25)

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM)
Tsukuba Central Research InstitutePriority goal 1: Realize a disaster prevention/mitigation focused society
Priority goal 5: Achieve DX in infrastructure development and management

Hydrological
5th PWRI Mid‐ and Long‐Term Plans (2022‐27)
R&D program: Technological development to implement “River Basin
Disaster Resilience and Sustainability by All,” the new flood control policy
to fight intensified water‐related disasters.

Priority Areas:
1. Scientific research and innovation
2. Water education in the Fourth Industrial
Revolution including Sustainability
3. Bridging the data‐knowledge gap
4. Integrated Water Resources Management
under conditions of Global Change
5. Water governance based on sciencefor
mitigation, adaptation, and resilience

Purpose: To contribute to preventing and mitigating water‐related disasters bypromoting Japan’s new flood control policy through technological development
aiming to assess future water‐related hazards, implement and evaluate the efforts
driven by the new policy, provide quality flood risk information, and strengthen
the society’s disaster resilience.

President

UNESCOIntergovernmental
Programme IHP‐9 (2022‐29)

Public Works Research Institute (PWRI)ICHARM Program (2022‐2027)

https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/program/index.html

Mission of ICHARM
The mission of ICHARM is to serve as the Global Centre of Excellence for Water Hazard and Risk Management by, inter alia, observing
and analyzing natural and social phenomena, developing methodologies and tools, building capacities, creating knowledge networks,
and disseminating lessons and information in order to assist governments and all stakeholders in managing risks of water‐related
hazards at global, national, and community levels. The hazards to be addressed include floods, droughts, landslides, debris flows,
tsunamis, storm surges, water contamination, and snow and ice disasters.
We envision a Center of Excellence housing a group of leading experts, superior facilities, and an excellent knowledge base, which
conducts (1) innovative research, (2) effective capacity building, and (3) efficient information networking. Based on these threepillars, ICHARM will globally serve as a knowledge hub for best national and local practices and a policy‐making advisor, keeping in
mind respect for the diversity and inclusion of all stakeholders.

Long‐term program (10 years)
Mid‐term program (6 years)(1) Innovative research
1)Data collection, storage, sharing,and statistics
2) Disaster risk assessment
3) Disaster risk monitoring and prediction4) Policy proposal, evaluation, and application
5) Support for better disaster preparedness(2) Effective capacity building
・Train future practitioners and leaders
・Train future facilitators
・Empower local organizations(3) Efficient information networking
・Expand a professional network
・Consolidate a consilience for water disaster
reduction
・Mainstream disaster risk reduction worldwide

International Flood Initiative (IFI)(Philippines, Indonesia, etc.)
・Hazard forecasting using satellite data
・Risk mapping and communication
・Cooperation with administrative andresearch organizations and capacity
building•

Educating overseas students &expanding the alumni network(MA: 157 students from 34 countries,
Ph.D.: 15 students from 5 countries)• Fostering practitioners andfacilitators in overseas countries•••

Collaborating with UNESCO, WMO& UNDRR
Supporting the Typhoon
Committee in establishing inter‐governmental cooperation
Hosting ICFM9

Kumamoto Initiative for Water(2022)
Use of observation andforecasting data

Satellite observation,
forecasting technology, data
integration and analysis

Assessment of water‐related
disaster risks

Hazard Research Group)

Director for Special
ResearchResearch &Training Advisor(Training)

Chief Researcher(Risk Management)
Chief Researcher(Water‐related Hazard)
Chief Researcher(Special Assignment)

Toshio Koike

Achievements & Contributions
2003
2004

2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016

2017

2018
2019
2020
2021

Risk mapping, flood analysis

2022

Enhancement of governanceand systems

2023

Collaboration among domestic
and international organizations,capacity building

Center for Advanced Engineering
Structural Assessment and Research(CAESAR)
Innovative Materials and Resources
Research Center (iMaRRC)

2006

The full version of the ICHARM Program:

Civil Engineering ResearchInstitute for Cold Region (CERI)International
Centre for Water Hazard
Chief Researcher
Deputy Director of

Executiveand Risk Management(ICHARM)ICHARM(Director of Water‐related
Director

March
Apr.1
Mar.6
Sep.14
Oct.4
Jun.2‐ Jul.11
Nov.13Oct.
Sep.27‐ 29
Jan.
Jul.10‐ Aug.7
Mar.5‐ 6
Jul.23
Feb.25Jul.
Oct.1
Mar.14‐ 18
Apr.12‐ 17
Mar.1‐ 2Oct. 31Jan.10Jun.
Jul.20
Dec.11‐ 12
Mar.17‐ 23
Oct.24‐ 26
Jun.24
Sep.30Nov.2‐ 4
Feb.13
Apr.1
Feb. 23
Jun. 11
Jun. 25
Dec. 1Feb. 25
Apr. 23, 24
Feb.19‐ 21

AccessProfessor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo, Council Member of Japan Science Council, Cabinet Office,Fellow of the Japan Federation of Engineering Societies,“International Contribution Award”, Japan Water Prize,"Science Award" by the Japan Society of Hydrology and Water Resources

Proposal was made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum.
Established "Secretariat for Preparatory Activities of UNESCO‐PWRI Centre".
ICHARM was officially established with Prof. Kuniyoshi Takeuchi as the first director.
(a)Held ICHARM inaugural ceremony & commemorative symposium. (a)Started an M. Sc. program on water‐related risk management with JICA and GRIPS. (b)Held a training course, “Comprehensive Tsunami Disaster Prevention,” with UNISDR.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA7276‐REG)”. (c)Started a doctoral program on disaster management with GRIPS.
Hosted the 5th International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM5) in Tokyo.
Started the UNESCO Pakistan Project.
Started a capacity development training on flood risk management with IFAS. (d)Hosted a side event at the UN Special Thematic Session on Water & Disasters. (New York)(c)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was renewed.
Held the first ICHARM Governing Board meeting.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA8456‐MYA)”.
Prof. Toshio Koike took over as the second director.
3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. (Sendai) ( e)7th World Water Forum (Daegu) (f)Held the Asian Water Cycle Symposium (AWCS) 2016. (Tokyo)
International Flood Initiative (IFI) "Jakarta declaration".
(e)
9th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposium ‐Implementation Planning Workshop on IFI (Tokyo).
Sent a researcher as a member of the Japan Disaster Relief Expert Team dispatched by the Japanese government to Sri Lanka.
3rd United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York).
3rd Asia‐Pacific Water Summit (Yangon) (g)
8th World Water Forum (Brasilia)
11th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposim (Kyoto)
4th United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York)
Executive Director Toshio Koike received the International Science Cooperation Award 2018 from the Chinese Academy of Science
12th Asia‐Oceania Group on Earth Observations (Canberra)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was revised.
Started SATREPS program, collabolative reserch with the Philippines.
ICHARM was given the “Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award” by Typhoon Committee (Jointly with JAXA・IDI).
Executive Director KOIKE Toshio received FY2020 JSCE International Lifetime Contribution Award.
Science and Technology Panel at the 5th UN Special Thematic Sessions on Water and Disasters
Held WADiRE‐Africa Information session
Follow‐up seminar for ICHARM graduates
4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit in Kumamoto (h)Hosted the 9th International Conference on Flood management (ICFM9) in Tsukuba.

Where in Tsukuba City

(b)

(d)

Background
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) has been promoting water sciences and technologies and,as part of its effort, encouraging the activities of theIntergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) and theestablishment of UNESCO water centers.
In fact, the world has been struggling with water‐related disasters,such as floods, droughts and windstorms. They have been a primarysource of disaster damage worldwide in recent decades and havebeen reported to become increasingly frequent and intense in recent
years. Today, water‐related disasters account for about 90% of all
natural disasters in the world, and about 40% of all water‐related
disasters occur in Asia alone.
In the meantime, Japan has a long history of fighting and overcomingwater‐related disasters and consequently has a wealth of knowledge
and experience, as well as sophisticated technology, in the field.
Leveraging this expertise, Japan has been taking the initiative in
addressing water‐related disasters by participating in the activities of
IHP and the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) anddemonstrating global leadership by hosting the 3rd World Water
Forum in 2003 in Kyoto, Japan.
With its growing presence in the water arena, Japan has further
realized international expectations that it should share its long‐accumulated expertise with other countries in consideration of theirneeds and conditions in order to help reduce disaster damage.

International Centre for
Water Hazard and Risk Management
under the auspices of UNESCO

(f)

(g)

produced by ICHARM based on the EM‐DAT database(h)Launch of ICHARM under the auspices of UNESCO

Where at PWRI

To respond to global expectations to fight against water‐related disasters, a proposal was
made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum in March
2003. The proposal received widespread support from member countries and UN
organizations at the IHP intergovernmental board meeting in September 2004 and was
adopted at the UNESCO general meeting in October 2005.
Finally, on March 6, 2006, the International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk
Management (ICHARM) was officially established as a UNESCO category II center and partof the Public Works Research Institute of Japan.
The agreement between UNESCO and the Government of Japan was revised and renewed
on February 13, 2020. based on the agreement, the ICHARM Governing Board meeting
was held every year.

4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit‐ Promote consilience of knowledge‐ Foster facilitators‐ Apply an End‐to‐End approach
MLIT’s international strategy‐ Approach directly to each country‐ Appeal to the international
community and development of
networks

 Support partner countries in developing “systems” and “human resources.” Accelerate “the mainstreaming of water‐related disaster risk reduction” worldwide.
 Promote “the implementation of scientific knowledge in society” and “the development of quality
infrastructure.”

ICHARM was established in March 2006 as part of the Public Works Research Institute, a core civil engineeringresearch center of Japan with a 100‐year history, based on an agreement between UNESCO and theGovernment of Japan, with the aim of mitigating water‐related disaster risks worldwide.
As the climate changes, extreme water disasters such as large‐scale floods and prolonged droughts havebecome frequent in many parts of the world. To cope with such disasters, all stakeholders must joinconcerted efforts to transform societies into resilient, sustainable ones. This transformation requires scienceand technology to propel the conciliation of knowledge through interdisciplinary collaboration. It also
requires cultivating human resources who can act as catalysts to link cutting‐edge technologies to individual
actions.
ICHARM has been developing advanced scientific knowledge in meteorology, hydrology, sediment hydraulics,
river engineering, geography, remote sensing, and risk management, while continuing efforts to integrateknowledge in collaboration with various academic fields, such as agriculture, economics, and sociology. At thesame time, we have been striving to foster human resources by strengthening cooperation with various
countries, regions, and international organizations.
ICHARM will deepen and broaden its activities to enhance science, technology, and capacity building, thereby
reducing water‐related disaster risks and contributing further to the implementation and improvement ofwell‐being in society.

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management under the auspices of UNESCO (ICHARM)
Public Works Research Institute (PWRI), National Research and Development Agency, Japan
1‐6 Minamihara, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture, 305‐8516, Japan
TEL +81‐29‐879‐6809 FAX +81‐29‐879‐6709 Email：icharm@pwri.go.jp URL: https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/index.html

Mt. Tsukuba and PWRI
Revised on 2023.1

Signing ceremony for the official launch of ICHARM:
the representative of the Japanese government (left), UNESCO
Secretary‐General (center) and PWRI Chief Executive.
(March 3, 2006)

ICHARM will contribute to the mitigation of water disaster damage around the world bycombining research activities, capacity building activities, and information network activities
with keywords such as "climate change," "sustainability," and "food and energy."

Global & National Plans

Greeting from
Executive Director

BudgetOrganization(Million Yen)

UN 2030 Agenda (SDGs)

National Land Development Plan (2015‐25)

UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction (Build Back Better)

5th Priority Plan for Social Infrastructure Development (2021‐25)

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM)
Tsukuba Central Research InstitutePriority goal 1: Realize a disaster prevention/mitigation focused society
Priority goal 5: Achieve DX in infrastructure development and management

Hydrological
5th PWRI Mid‐ and Long‐Term Plans (2022‐27)
R&D program: Technological development to implement “River Basin
Disaster Resilience and Sustainability by All,” the new flood control policy
to fight intensified water‐related disasters.

Priority Areas:
1. Scientific research and innovation
2. Water education in the Fourth Industrial
Revolution including Sustainability
3. Bridging the data‐knowledge gap
4. Integrated Water Resources Management
under conditions of Global Change
5. Water governance based on sciencefor
mitigation, adaptation, and resilience

Purpose: To contribute to preventing and mitigating water‐related disasters bypromoting Japan’s new flood control policy through technological development
aiming to assess future water‐related hazards, implement and evaluate the efforts
driven by the new policy, provide quality flood risk information, and strengthen
the society’s disaster resilience.

President

UNESCOIntergovernmental
Programme IHP‐9 (2022‐29)

Public Works Research Institute (PWRI)ICHARM Program (2022‐2027)

https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/program/index.html

Mission of ICHARM
The mission of ICHARM is to serve as the Global Centre of Excellence for Water Hazard and Risk Management by, inter alia, observing
and analyzing natural and social phenomena, developing methodologies and tools, building capacities, creating knowledge networks,
and disseminating lessons and information in order to assist governments and all stakeholders in managing risks of water‐related
hazards at global, national, and community levels. The hazards to be addressed include floods, droughts, landslides, debris flows,
tsunamis, storm surges, water contamination, and snow and ice disasters.
We envision a Center of Excellence housing a group of leading experts, superior facilities, and an excellent knowledge base, which
conducts (1) innovative research, (2) effective capacity building, and (3) efficient information networking. Based on these threepillars, ICHARM will globally serve as a knowledge hub for best national and local practices and a policy‐making advisor, keeping in
mind respect for the diversity and inclusion of all stakeholders.

Long‐term program (10 years)
Mid‐term program (6 years)(1) Innovative research
1)Data collection, storage, sharing,and statistics
2) Disaster risk assessment
3) Disaster risk monitoring and prediction4) Policy proposal, evaluation, and application
5) Support for better disaster preparedness(2) Effective capacity building
・Train future practitioners and leaders
・Train future facilitators
・Empower local organizations(3) Efficient information networking
・Expand a professional network
・Consolidate a consilience for water disaster
reduction
・Mainstream disaster risk reduction worldwide

International Flood Initiative (IFI)(Philippines, Indonesia, etc.)
・Hazard forecasting using satellite data
・Risk mapping and communication
・Cooperation with administrative andresearch organizations and capacity
building•

Educating overseas students &expanding the alumni network(MA: 157 students from 34 countries,
Ph.D.: 15 students from 5 countries)• Fostering practitioners andfacilitators in overseas countries•••

Collaborating with UNESCO, WMO& UNDRR
Supporting the Typhoon
Committee in establishing inter‐governmental cooperation
Hosting ICFM9

Kumamoto Initiative for Water(2022)
Use of observation andforecasting data

Satellite observation,
forecasting technology, data
integration and analysis

Assessment of water‐related
disaster risks

Hazard Research Group)

Director for Special
ResearchResearch &Training Advisor(Training)

Chief Researcher(Risk Management)
Chief Researcher(Water‐related Hazard)
Chief Researcher(Special Assignment)

Toshio Koike

Achievements & Contributions
2003
2004

2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016

2017

2018
2019
2020
2021

Risk mapping, flood analysis

2022

Enhancement of governanceand systems

2023

Collaboration among domestic
and international organizations,capacity building

Center for Advanced Engineering
Structural Assessment and Research(CAESAR)
Innovative Materials and Resources
Research Center (iMaRRC)

2006

The full version of the ICHARM Program:

Civil Engineering ResearchInstitute for Cold Region (CERI)International
Centre for Water Hazard
Chief Researcher
Deputy Director of

Executiveand Risk Management(ICHARM)ICHARM(Director of Water‐related
Director

March
Apr.1
Mar.6
Sep.14
Oct.4
Jun.2‐ Jul.11
Nov.13Oct.
Sep.27‐ 29
Jan.
Jul.10‐ Aug.7
Mar.5‐ 6
Jul.23
Feb.25Jul.
Oct.1
Mar.14‐ 18
Apr.12‐ 17
Mar.1‐ 2Oct. 31Jan.10Jun.
Jul.20
Dec.11‐ 12
Mar.17‐ 23
Oct.24‐ 26
Jun.24
Sep.30Nov.2‐ 4
Feb.13
Apr.1
Feb. 23
Jun. 11
Jun. 25
Dec. 1Feb. 25
Apr. 23, 24
Feb.19‐ 21

AccessProfessor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo, Council Member of Japan Science Council, Cabinet Office,Fellow of the Japan Federation of Engineering Societies,“International Contribution Award”, Japan Water Prize,"Science Award" by the Japan Society of Hydrology and Water Resources

Proposal was made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum.
Established "Secretariat for Preparatory Activities of UNESCO‐PWRI Centre".
ICHARM was officially established with Prof. Kuniyoshi Takeuchi as the first director.
(a)Held ICHARM inaugural ceremony & commemorative symposium. (a)Started an M. Sc. program on water‐related risk management with JICA and GRIPS. (b)Held a training course, “Comprehensive Tsunami Disaster Prevention,” with UNISDR.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA7276‐REG)”. (c)Started a doctoral program on disaster management with GRIPS.
Hosted the 5th International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM5) in Tokyo.
Started the UNESCO Pakistan Project.
Started a capacity development training on flood risk management with IFAS. (d)Hosted a side event at the UN Special Thematic Session on Water & Disasters. (New York)(c)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was renewed.
Held the first ICHARM Governing Board meeting.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA8456‐MYA)”.
Prof. Toshio Koike took over as the second director.
3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. (Sendai) ( e)7th World Water Forum (Daegu) (f)Held the Asian Water Cycle Symposium (AWCS) 2016. (Tokyo)
International Flood Initiative (IFI) "Jakarta declaration".
(e)
9th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposium ‐Implementation Planning Workshop on IFI (Tokyo).
Sent a researcher as a member of the Japan Disaster Relief Expert Team dispatched by the Japanese government to Sri Lanka.
3rd United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York).
3rd Asia‐Pacific Water Summit (Yangon) (g)
8th World Water Forum (Brasilia)
11th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposim (Kyoto)
4th United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York)
Executive Director Toshio Koike received the International Science Cooperation Award 2018 from the Chinese Academy of Science
12th Asia‐Oceania Group on Earth Observations (Canberra)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was revised.
Started SATREPS program, collabolative reserch with the Philippines.
ICHARM was given the “Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award” by Typhoon Committee (Jointly with JAXA・IDI).
Executive Director KOIKE Toshio received FY2020 JSCE International Lifetime Contribution Award.
Science and Technology Panel at the 5th UN Special Thematic Sessions on Water and Disasters
Held WADiRE‐Africa Information session
Follow‐up seminar for ICHARM graduates
4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit in Kumamoto (h)Hosted the 9th International Conference on Flood management (ICFM9) in Tsukuba.

Where in Tsukuba City

(b)

(d)

Background
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) has been promoting water sciences and technologies and,as part of its effort, encouraging the activities of theIntergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) and theestablishment of UNESCO water centers.
In fact, the world has been struggling with water‐related disasters,such as floods, droughts and windstorms. They have been a primarysource of disaster damage worldwide in recent decades and havebeen reported to become increasingly frequent and intense in recent
years. Today, water‐related disasters account for about 90% of all
natural disasters in the world, and about 40% of all water‐related
disasters occur in Asia alone.
In the meantime, Japan has a long history of fighting and overcomingwater‐related disasters and consequently has a wealth of knowledge
and experience, as well as sophisticated technology, in the field.
Leveraging this expertise, Japan has been taking the initiative in
addressing water‐related disasters by participating in the activities of
IHP and the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) anddemonstrating global leadership by hosting the 3rd World Water
Forum in 2003 in Kyoto, Japan.
With its growing presence in the water arena, Japan has further
realized international expectations that it should share its long‐accumulated expertise with other countries in consideration of theirneeds and conditions in order to help reduce disaster damage.

International Centre for
Water Hazard and Risk Management
under the auspices of UNESCO

(f)

(g)

produced by ICHARM based on the EM‐DAT database(h)Launch of ICHARM under the auspices of UNESCO

Where at PWRI

To respond to global expectations to fight against water‐related disasters, a proposal was
made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum in March
2003. The proposal received widespread support from member countries and UN
organizations at the IHP intergovernmental board meeting in September 2004 and was
adopted at the UNESCO general meeting in October 2005.
Finally, on March 6, 2006, the International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk
Management (ICHARM) was officially established as a UNESCO category II center and partof the Public Works Research Institute of Japan.
The agreement between UNESCO and the Government of Japan was revised and renewed
on February 13, 2020. based on the agreement, the ICHARM Governing Board meeting
was held every year.

4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit‐ Promote consilience of knowledge‐ Foster facilitators‐ Apply an End‐to‐End approach
MLIT’s international strategy‐ Approach directly to each country‐ Appeal to the international
community and development of
networks

 Support partner countries in developing “systems” and “human resources.” Accelerate “the mainstreaming of water‐related disaster risk reduction” worldwide.
 Promote “the implementation of scientific knowledge in society” and “the development of quality
infrastructure.”

ICHARM was established in March 2006 as part of the Public Works Research Institute, a core civil engineeringresearch center of Japan with a 100‐year history, based on an agreement between UNESCO and theGovernment of Japan, with the aim of mitigating water‐related disaster risks worldwide.
As the climate changes, extreme water disasters such as large‐scale floods and prolonged droughts havebecome frequent in many parts of the world. To cope with such disasters, all stakeholders must joinconcerted efforts to transform societies into resilient, sustainable ones. This transformation requires scienceand technology to propel the conciliation of knowledge through interdisciplinary collaboration. It also
requires cultivating human resources who can act as catalysts to link cutting‐edge technologies to individual
actions.
ICHARM has been developing advanced scientific knowledge in meteorology, hydrology, sediment hydraulics,
river engineering, geography, remote sensing, and risk management, while continuing efforts to integrateknowledge in collaboration with various academic fields, such as agriculture, economics, and sociology. At thesame time, we have been striving to foster human resources by strengthening cooperation with various
countries, regions, and international organizations.
ICHARM will deepen and broaden its activities to enhance science, technology, and capacity building, thereby
reducing water‐related disaster risks and contributing further to the implementation and improvement ofwell‐being in society.

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management under the auspices of UNESCO (ICHARM)
Public Works Research Institute (PWRI), National Research and Development Agency, Japan
1‐6 Minamihara, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture, 305‐8516, Japan
TEL +81‐29‐879‐6809 FAX +81‐29‐879‐6709 Email：icharm@pwri.go.jp URL: https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/index.html

Mt. Tsukuba and PWRI
Revised on 2023.1

Signing ceremony for the official launch of ICHARM:
the representative of the Japanese government (left), UNESCO
Secretary‐General (center) and PWRI Chief Executive.
(March 3, 2006)

ICHARM will contribute to the mitigation of water disaster damage around the world bycombining research activities, capacity building activities, and information network activities
with keywords such as "climate change," "sustainability," and "food and energy."

Global & National Plans

Greeting from
Executive Director

BudgetOrganization(Million Yen)

UN 2030 Agenda (SDGs)

National Land Development Plan (2015‐25)

UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction (Build Back Better)

5th Priority Plan for Social Infrastructure Development (2021‐25)

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM)
Tsukuba Central Research InstitutePriority goal 1: Realize a disaster prevention/mitigation focused society
Priority goal 5: Achieve DX in infrastructure development and management

Hydrological
5th PWRI Mid‐ and Long‐Term Plans (2022‐27)
R&D program: Technological development to implement “River Basin
Disaster Resilience and Sustainability by All,” the new flood control policy
to fight intensified water‐related disasters.

Priority Areas:
1. Scientific research and innovation
2. Water education in the Fourth Industrial
Revolution including Sustainability
3. Bridging the data‐knowledge gap
4. Integrated Water Resources Management
under conditions of Global Change
5. Water governance based on sciencefor
mitigation, adaptation, and resilience

Purpose: To contribute to preventing and mitigating water‐related disasters bypromoting Japan’s new flood control policy through technological development
aiming to assess future water‐related hazards, implement and evaluate the efforts
driven by the new policy, provide quality flood risk information, and strengthen
the society’s disaster resilience.

President

UNESCOIntergovernmental
Programme IHP‐9 (2022‐29)

Public Works Research Institute (PWRI)ICHARM Program (2022‐2027)

https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/program/index.html

Mission of ICHARM
The mission of ICHARM is to serve as the Global Centre of Excellence for Water Hazard and Risk Management by, inter alia, observing
and analyzing natural and social phenomena, developing methodologies and tools, building capacities, creating knowledge networks,
and disseminating lessons and information in order to assist governments and all stakeholders in managing risks of water‐related
hazards at global, national, and community levels. The hazards to be addressed include floods, droughts, landslides, debris flows,
tsunamis, storm surges, water contamination, and snow and ice disasters.
We envision a Center of Excellence housing a group of leading experts, superior facilities, and an excellent knowledge base, which
conducts (1) innovative research, (2) effective capacity building, and (3) efficient information networking. Based on these threepillars, ICHARM will globally serve as a knowledge hub for best national and local practices and a policy‐making advisor, keeping in
mind respect for the diversity and inclusion of all stakeholders.

Long‐term program (10 years)
Mid‐term program (6 years)(1) Innovative research
1)Data collection, storage, sharing,and statistics
2) Disaster risk assessment
3) Disaster risk monitoring and prediction4) Policy proposal, evaluation, and application
5) Support for better disaster preparedness(2) Effective capacity building
・Train future practitioners and leaders
・Train future facilitators
・Empower local organizations(3) Efficient information networking
・Expand a professional network
・Consolidate a consilience for water disaster
reduction
・Mainstream disaster risk reduction worldwide

International Flood Initiative (IFI)(Philippines, Indonesia, etc.)
・Hazard forecasting using satellite data
・Risk mapping and communication
・Cooperation with administrative andresearch organizations and capacity
building•

Educating overseas students &expanding the alumni network(MA: 157 students from 34 countries,
Ph.D.: 15 students from 5 countries)• Fostering practitioners andfacilitators in overseas countries•••

Collaborating with UNESCO, WMO& UNDRR
Supporting the Typhoon
Committee in establishing inter‐governmental cooperation
Hosting ICFM9

Kumamoto Initiative for Water(2022)
Use of observation andforecasting data

Satellite observation,
forecasting technology, data
integration and analysis

Assessment of water‐related
disaster risks

Hazard Research Group)

Director for Special
ResearchResearch &Training Advisor(Training)

Chief Researcher(Risk Management)
Chief Researcher(Water‐related Hazard)
Chief Researcher(Special Assignment)

Toshio Koike

Achievements & Contributions
2003
2004

2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016

2017

2018
2019
2020
2021

Risk mapping, flood analysis

2022

Enhancement of governanceand systems

2023

Collaboration among domestic
and international organizations,capacity building

Center for Advanced Engineering
Structural Assessment and Research(CAESAR)
Innovative Materials and Resources
Research Center (iMaRRC)

2006

The full version of the ICHARM Program:

Civil Engineering ResearchInstitute for Cold Region (CERI)International
Centre for Water Hazard
Chief Researcher
Deputy Director of

Executiveand Risk Management(ICHARM)ICHARM(Director of Water‐related
Director

March
Apr.1
Mar.6
Sep.14
Oct.4
Jun.2‐ Jul.11
Nov.13Oct.
Sep.27‐ 29
Jan.
Jul.10‐ Aug.7
Mar.5‐ 6
Jul.23
Feb.25Jul.
Oct.1
Mar.14‐ 18
Apr.12‐ 17
Mar.1‐ 2Oct. 31Jan.10Jun.
Jul.20
Dec.11‐ 12
Mar.17‐ 23
Oct.24‐ 26
Jun.24
Sep.30Nov.2‐ 4
Feb.13
Apr.1
Feb. 23
Jun. 11
Jun. 25
Dec. 1Feb. 25
Apr. 23, 24
Feb.19‐ 21

AccessProfessor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo, Council Member of Japan Science Council, Cabinet Office,Fellow of the Japan Federation of Engineering Societies,“International Contribution Award”, Japan Water Prize,"Science Award" by the Japan Society of Hydrology and Water Resources

Proposal was made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum.
Established "Secretariat for Preparatory Activities of UNESCO‐PWRI Centre".
ICHARM was officially established with Prof. Kuniyoshi Takeuchi as the first director.
(a)Held ICHARM inaugural ceremony & commemorative symposium. (a)Started an M. Sc. program on water‐related risk management with JICA and GRIPS. (b)Held a training course, “Comprehensive Tsunami Disaster Prevention,” with UNISDR.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA7276‐REG)”. (c)Started a doctoral program on disaster management with GRIPS.
Hosted the 5th International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM5) in Tokyo.
Started the UNESCO Pakistan Project.
Started a capacity development training on flood risk management with IFAS. (d)Hosted a side event at the UN Special Thematic Session on Water & Disasters. (New York)(c)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was renewed.
Held the first ICHARM Governing Board meeting.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA8456‐MYA)”.
Prof. Toshio Koike took over as the second director.
3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. (Sendai) ( e)7th World Water Forum (Daegu) (f)Held the Asian Water Cycle Symposium (AWCS) 2016. (Tokyo)
International Flood Initiative (IFI) "Jakarta declaration".
(e)
9th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposium ‐Implementation Planning Workshop on IFI (Tokyo).
Sent a researcher as a member of the Japan Disaster Relief Expert Team dispatched by the Japanese government to Sri Lanka.
3rd United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York).
3rd Asia‐Pacific Water Summit (Yangon) (g)
8th World Water Forum (Brasilia)
11th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposim (Kyoto)
4th United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York)
Executive Director Toshio Koike received the International Science Cooperation Award 2018 from the Chinese Academy of Science
12th Asia‐Oceania Group on Earth Observations (Canberra)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was revised.
Started SATREPS program, collabolative reserch with the Philippines.
ICHARM was given the “Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award” by Typhoon Committee (Jointly with JAXA・IDI).
Executive Director KOIKE Toshio received FY2020 JSCE International Lifetime Contribution Award.
Science and Technology Panel at the 5th UN Special Thematic Sessions on Water and Disasters
Held WADiRE‐Africa Information session
Follow‐up seminar for ICHARM graduates
4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit in Kumamoto (h)Hosted the 9th International Conference on Flood management (ICFM9) in Tsukuba.

Where in Tsukuba City

(b)

(d)

Background
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) has been promoting water sciences and technologies and,as part of its effort, encouraging the activities of theIntergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) and theestablishment of UNESCO water centers.
In fact, the world has been struggling with water‐related disasters,such as floods, droughts and windstorms. They have been a primarysource of disaster damage worldwide in recent decades and havebeen reported to become increasingly frequent and intense in recent
years. Today, water‐related disasters account for about 90% of all
natural disasters in the world, and about 40% of all water‐related
disasters occur in Asia alone.
In the meantime, Japan has a long history of fighting and overcomingwater‐related disasters and consequently has a wealth of knowledge
and experience, as well as sophisticated technology, in the field.
Leveraging this expertise, Japan has been taking the initiative in
addressing water‐related disasters by participating in the activities of
IHP and the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) anddemonstrating global leadership by hosting the 3rd World Water
Forum in 2003 in Kyoto, Japan.
With its growing presence in the water arena, Japan has further
realized international expectations that it should share its long‐accumulated expertise with other countries in consideration of theirneeds and conditions in order to help reduce disaster damage.

International Centre for
Water Hazard and Risk Management
under the auspices of UNESCO

(f)

(g)

produced by ICHARM based on the EM‐DAT database(h)Launch of ICHARM under the auspices of UNESCO

Where at PWRI

To respond to global expectations to fight against water‐related disasters, a proposal was
made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum in March
2003. The proposal received widespread support from member countries and UN
organizations at the IHP intergovernmental board meeting in September 2004 and was
adopted at the UNESCO general meeting in October 2005.
Finally, on March 6, 2006, the International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk
Management (ICHARM) was officially established as a UNESCO category II center and partof the Public Works Research Institute of Japan.
The agreement between UNESCO and the Government of Japan was revised and renewed
on February 13, 2020. based on the agreement, the ICHARM Governing Board meeting
was held every year.

4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit‐ Promote consilience of knowledge‐ Foster facilitators‐ Apply an End‐to‐End approach
MLIT’s international strategy‐ Approach directly to each country‐ Appeal to the international
community and development of
networks

 Support partner countries in developing “systems” and “human resources.” Accelerate “the mainstreaming of water‐related disaster risk reduction” worldwide.
 Promote “the implementation of scientific knowledge in society” and “the development of quality
infrastructure.”

ICHARM was established in March 2006 as part of the Public Works Research Institute, a core civil engineeringresearch center of Japan with a 100‐year history, based on an agreement between UNESCO and theGovernment of Japan, with the aim of mitigating water‐related disaster risks worldwide.
As the climate changes, extreme water disasters such as large‐scale floods and prolonged droughts havebecome frequent in many parts of the world. To cope with such disasters, all stakeholders must joinconcerted efforts to transform societies into resilient, sustainable ones. This transformation requires scienceand technology to propel the conciliation of knowledge through interdisciplinary collaboration. It also
requires cultivating human resources who can act as catalysts to link cutting‐edge technologies to individual
actions.
ICHARM has been developing advanced scientific knowledge in meteorology, hydrology, sediment hydraulics,
river engineering, geography, remote sensing, and risk management, while continuing efforts to integrateknowledge in collaboration with various academic fields, such as agriculture, economics, and sociology. At thesame time, we have been striving to foster human resources by strengthening cooperation with various
countries, regions, and international organizations.
ICHARM will deepen and broaden its activities to enhance science, technology, and capacity building, thereby
reducing water‐related disaster risks and contributing further to the implementation and improvement ofwell‐being in society.

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management under the auspices of UNESCO (ICHARM)
Public Works Research Institute (PWRI), National Research and Development Agency, Japan
1‐6 Minamihara, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture, 305‐8516, Japan
TEL +81‐29‐879‐6809 FAX +81‐29‐879‐6709 Email：icharm@pwri.go.jp URL: https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/index.html

Mt. Tsukuba and PWRI
Revised on 2023.1

Signing ceremony for the official launch of ICHARM:
the representative of the Japanese government (left), UNESCO
Secretary‐General (center) and PWRI Chief Executive.
(March 3, 2006)

ICHARM will contribute to the mitigation of water disaster damage around the world bycombining research activities, capacity building activities, and information network activities
with keywords such as "climate change," "sustainability," and "food and energy."

(4) Proposal, evaluation, and application of policy ideas for water‐related risk reduction

End‐to‐End approach (from data collection to the analysis, assessment and prediction of natural phenomena to socio‐economic impact assessment)

Development of a water‐level prediction system for small and medium rivers

ICHARM conducts research and practical activities worldwide in cooperation with various domestic and international organizations and has produced many award‐winning papers and technologies.
(2) Risk assessment on water‐related disasters

ICHARM developed the flood early
warning system (FEWS) for the Niger
and Volta River Basins in West Africa
using the WEB‐RRI model, a model
capable of computing the water andheat budget at the ground surface
and simulating rainfall, runoff, andinundation. The system has been
made publicly available to 11 west
African countries and relevantorganizations in the basin, helping
them share information.

Partners: The Universityof Tokyo Earth
Observation Data
Integration and Fusion
Research Initiative(EDITORIA), West Africa
Center for agriculture,
meteorology, andhydrology
Funding: UNESCO

Award: Best Presentation Awardof river engineering, JSCEPWRI Priority Dissemination
Technology: Rainfall‐Runoff‐Inundation
Analysis Model

ICHARM developed the Rainfall‐Sediment‐Runoff (RSR) model,
capable of analyzing the behavior of water, sediment, anddriftwood produced in a basin during a heavy rainfall event in an
integrated manner. The model was tested on past floods andverified for its capability. Studies have also revealed that themodel can be used for hazard mapping and evacuation
forecasting and warning.
Field investigation

Simulation

Output visualization using online
information dissemination on DIAS:
in‐situ rainfall, satellite rainfall,calibrated rainfall, inundation
simulations

Development of optimized dam operation
based on dam inflow prediction
ICHARM jointly developed a dam operation method with
an electric power company to increase dams’ flood control
capacity and power generation efficiency using dam inflow
forecasts. This development has shown that dam
operation can be modified to improve the capacity ofhydroelectric dams for power generation and flood control
simultaneously.
Partner: Chubu Electric Power Company

Discharge (m3/s)

Development of models to reproduce
and predict flood inundation with sediment

Development of a flood early warning system(FEWS) for West Africa(3) Monitoring and prediction of changes inwater‐related disaster risks

Storage water level (m)(1) Data collection, storage, sharing, andstatistics on water‐related disasters

Forecasted inflow
Observed inflow
Water used for
power generation

Prediction of water‐related disaster risks (floods, droughts)
due to climate change (Solo and Davao River basins)
Funding: Integrated Research Program for Advancing Climate Models by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Partners: Kyoto University Disaster Prevention Research Institute,organizations of Indonesia and the Philippines

Number of deposited driftwood pieces

Utilization of satellite rainfall products
in data‐scarce areas
ICHARM studied the optimal density and placement patternof ground rain gauges for bias correction by taking the Fuji
River basin in Japan as an example. The results showed thata certain number of ground rain gauges in a basin can
provide enough ground rainfall data to correct real‐timesatellite rainfall products, making it possible to perform
sufficiently accurate runoff analysis.

Estimation of rainfall and inundation area using satellite data
(Myanmar agriculture development support project: technicalsupport for flood simulation of areas downstream of the Swa
Chaung Dam)
ICHARM created rainfall data whose temporal and spatial
resolutions were increased by using GSMaP data bias‐
corrected with ground rainfall. The rainfall data withimproved resolutions were applied to a runoff‐inundation
model to simulate an earth dam failure in Myanmar. The
inundation area was identified by comparing SAR images
before and after a flood and detecting changes in vegetation
surface due to flood flow. The identified inundation area wasused to verify inundation models.
Funding: World BankICHARM developed the Water‐Energy‐Budget Rainfall‐Runoff‐
Inundation (WEB‐RRI) model by combining a water‐energy budget
model capable of representing the transport of water and energy (heatand radiation) in the atmosphere‐vegetation‐soil system and an RRI
model capable of simultaneously calculating river runoff and flooding ina basin. ICHARM has applied this model to the Solo River basin ofIndonesia and the Davao River basin of the Philippines to study the
impact of global warming on precipitation, flood runoff inundation, andwater resources.

Observed outflow
Estimated outflow

The relationship between the estimation accuracy of the hydrologic
model using the bias‐corrected satellite rainfall products (vertical axis,
Nash coefficient) and the number of rain gauges installed in the basin tocollect data for bias correction (horizontal axis).

Development of a CLVDAS‐based droughtmonitoring system for West Africa
Funding: World BankICHARM developed CLVDAS on DIAS for West Africa. CLVDAS is a system consisting of passive microwave remote sensing techniques, aland surface model, a dynamic vegetation model, and a data assimilation scheme. ICHARM investigated agricultural droughts that
occurred in the area from 2003 to 2018 using CLVDAS to calculate soil moisture and vegetation water content from the ground surface
to the root layer.
Vegetation water content

Root‐layer soil
moisture

Dam‐failure inundation area estimatedusing SAR data

Inundation simulation result

The Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development Program (SATREPS)• The Project for Development of a Hybrid Water‐Related Disaster Risk Assessment Technology for Sustainable
Local Economic Development Policy under Climate Change in the Republic of the Philippines (HyDEPP‐SATREPS)
Principal organization: ICHARM
Partner organizations: The University of Tokyo, Tohoku University, Shiga Prefectural University, Nagoya University, Kyoto
University, Philippine organizations (University of the Philippines, Department of Science and Technology, etc.)

A scene from an investigation on damage
caused by Typhoon No. 19 in 2019
(Tochigi Prefecture, Japan)

A scene from an investigation ofriverbank erosion in February 2020
(Sittaung River, Myanmar)

Funding: JST, JICA

Joint projects:
 Regional Resilience Enhancement through Establishment of Area‐BCM at Industry Complexes in Thailand Research for the development of a real‐time flood forecasting system using rainfall forecasts for Argentina

教育・研修プログラム
Effective
capacity building

Select a water-level observation pointon the map for forecasting results

Award: River Symposium River Technology Paper Award, JSCE

Collecting water levels, channel conditions, etc., isessential to reduce flood disaster risks. Prefectures areusually responsible for carrying out this task for small
and medium rivers, but they often have difficulty
performing it because there are so many. To help themwith the task, ICHARM has developed a simple, low‐
cost system capable of predicting water levels withadequate accuracy and short computation time.

No. of Master’s program
students by country
Display screen

Observed water level

Forecasted water level

・Forecasting period: up to 6 hours ahead
・Information update interval: 30 minutes
・ICHARM has created models for 200 rivers nationwide and has been
trying to incorporate them into the flood forecasting system.

IDRIS: one‐stop disaster information system

VR‐driven flood experience system

Partners: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Iwaizumi of Iwate Prefecture,
Tsuruoka of Yamagata PrefecturePartner: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Kumamoto of Kumamoto PrefectureAward: 2019 Institute of Social Safety Science Technology Award

ICHARM developed a virtual flood experience system using VR
technology. The system reproduces a flood event using the RRI
model and a flood inundation model that are fed with spatial
information collected by means of UAVs, ground laser surveys,
and photogrammetry. It also allows users to play an avatar andvirtually try out evacuation during flooding.

ICHARM developed the
ICHARM Disaster Risk
Information
System(IDRIS)formunicipalitiesinmountainous areas withlittleevacuation
information. This basic
system is designed tohelp operate a portalsite that works as aone‐stop flood disaster
IDRIS operating on DIAS andinformation center for
IDRIS’s display for smartphones
residents to use inemergencies and to improve their disaster preparedness innormal times. The system has been modified to accommodate
the needs of smartphone users.

Defining critical situations in which local government officers have a
hard time making sensible decisions because they panic, don’t knowwhat to do, are confused or in dilemma, etc., during an emergency
response effort, ICHARM collected typical critical situations from past
flood disaster reports and published as the “Collection of Critical
Situations during Flood Emergency Response.”
PWRI Priority
Technology for
Dissemination:
Collection of Critical
Situations during
Flood Emergency
Response (local
government version)Award: 2021 MLIT
National Land andInfrastructure
Technology ResearchGroup Outstanding
Research Award

Development of OSS‐SR and “Facilitators” for Davao City
ICHARM developed the Online Synthesis System for Sustainability and
Resilience (OSS‐SR) and has been using it in e‐learning programs tofoster “Facilitators.” The OSS‐SR for Davao City, the Philippines,
integrates knowledge and information on real‐time flood forecasting
and climate change impact assessment and allows local stakeholders
to learn about them through e‐learning programs.

The system can accurately reproduce rain clouds, rainfall, flooding, etc. It allows
people to play an avatar and virtually experience flooding, as well as evacuation
and rescue efforts during flooding.

An advanced disaster risk assessment method
for more accurate information
In an effort to 100%90%develop a method
80%
for more accurate
70%
assessmentsof60%
Headquarters: Direct loss
本社_直接被害有り
Headquarters: Only indirect loss
50%
本社_間接被害のみ
disaster risks that
Branch offices: Direct loss
支社_直接被害有り
40%
had not been
Branch offices : Only indirect loss
支社_間接被害のみ
30%
Factories: Direct loss
生産拠点_直接被害有り
evaluatedby
20%
Factories: Only indirect loss
生産拠点_間接被害のみ
10%conventional0%methods, ICHARM
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
conducteda
営業停止日数（日）Businesssuspension days
questionnaire
survey for businesses and analyzed the impact of adisaster on their production and sales activities. The
results revealed the relationship between the presence orabsence of direct and indirect damage and the days ofbusiness suspension.

ICHARM provides various educational and training
programs to improve individuals' problem‐solving
skills and disaster management organizations'disaster response capabilities.
ICHARM also holds follow‐up seminars and otheractivities to help trainees better understand theissues they face even after they return home, as
well as to get feedback to improve the training
programs further.

1. Master’s program (one year): This one‐year master’s program, officially titled “Water‐related Risk
Management Course of Disaster Management Policy Program (JICA Training Program: Training forExpert on Flood‐Related Disaster Mitigation),” has been provided since 2007 as a joint effort with JICA
and GRIPS, mainly targeted at officials of administrative organizations. The first half of the course
consists mostly of lectures and hands‐on practices, while the second half requires the students to workon graduation theses. In addition, several study trips are conducted during the program. As of
September 2022, a total of 170 students graduated with a master’s degree.
2. Doctoral program (three years): The doctoral program, officially titled “Disaster Management
Program,” has been provided since 2010 in collaboration with GRIPS. By September 2020, 15 students
had earned a doctoral degree, and nine from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Nepal, the Philippines, andPakistan were enrolled as of October 2022.
3. Short‐term training (several days): Short‐term training programs are conducted for participants tolearn technology and knowledge about water‐related disaster management. ICHARM has conductedpart of a JICA‐led program on water‐related disaster risk reduction since 2019, when 12 participantsfrom nine countries attended the first‐year program.
4. Follow‐up activities: Seminars and other events have been held to support program graduates in
activities in which they are involved after they return home.

Follow‐up seminars

Virtual flood experience system

Collection of critical situations
during flood emergency response

Surface and root‐layer soil
moisture and vegetation watercontent calculated by CLVDAS

Field investigation
ICHARM researches how flooding and flood‐related
sediment and driftwood change the landform of anarea extending from a river’s upper reach to its mouthby conducting field investigations, sample analyses,
and numerical analyses, and also studies applicationsof the research results to assess disaster risks.

Simulation results (October 2018): the simulation was conductedusing the top 25% time‐series discharge while aiming more at flood
control than at power generation (i.e., by assuming dam water
releases before an event) due to a high storage level at the time of
dam inflow forecasting.

Surface soil moisture

Inundation
marks

Development of a real-time flood
forecasting system(5) Support in improving the applicability of water‐related disaster management

Simulation of river discharge,
water level, and inundation area
The outline of West Africa’s FEWS

Partner: Cabinet Office PRISM

Ratio
of Recovery
営業再開の割合

Innovative Research

Master’s and doctoral students
after the graduation ceremony(Sep. 2022)

Creating an infection‐resistanteducational environment

ICHARM has held a follow‐up seminar, includingsite visits, once a year since 2007 in a country ofgraduates from ICHARM educational and training
programs. This annual meeting is an excellent
opportunity for ICHARM to see how graduates areapplying the knowledge and skills they learned
through the programs, as well as to share issues
they face in their practices. Such information isused to improve the programs and research
activities. On February 25, 2022, despite the
COVID‐19 pandemic, we decided to hold aseminar online for the first time, in which two
special speakers and 69 master’s and doctoral
graduates participated.

To continue educational programs amid the spread of the
new coronavirus infection, ICHARM introduced devices,such as electronic blackboards, and systems that allowed
students to attend lectures online in real time even when
they were unable to come to Japan. We took thoroughinfection control measures when in‐person classes
became possible, for example, by setting up partitions andintroducing flexible class management in which classes
were conducted face‐to‐face, remotely, or in combination,
depending on infection status.

Efficient information networking
International Flood Initiative (IFI)

Partners: UNESCO, WMO, UNU, UNDRR, etc.

The International Flood Initiative (IFI) is a framework for international organizations, such as UNESCO, the World MeteorologicalOrganization, the United Nations University, and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, to cooperate in promoting
global flood management. ICHARM has been its secretariat since its foundation.
On October 31, 2016, the Jakarta Declaration was adopted for interdisciplinary cooperation to further promote flood risk
reduction and sustainable development. In response, ICHARM, in collaboration with the IFI partners, has been conducting a
project to establish a “Platform on Water and Disasters” in flood‐prone countries to reduce water‐related disaster risks.

Typhoon Committee

ICHARM Webinar

Award: 2020 Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award, with the Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Infrastructure Development Institute (IDI)
Partners: The
Philippine’s
Departmentof ScienceandTechnology,etc.

The Typhoon Committee is an intergovernmental community formed
in 1968 to promote and coordinate planning and implementation
measures to minimize human and property damage from typhoons in
the Asia‐Pacific region. As chairman of the Hydrology Subcommittee,
ICHARM will lead the discussions together with the MLIT. ICHARM
has contributed greatly to support Committee's flood hazard
mapping project and improving flood forecasting and management
capabilities in the area through the use of satellite products
developed and provided by JAXA.

ICHARM Webinar is held once a year to disseminate
ICHARM's research activities to master's and doctoral
students and young researchers in universities andresearch institutes in Japan and abroad

(4) Proposal, evaluation, and application of policy ideas for water‐related risk reduction

End‐to‐End approach (from data collection to the analysis, assessment and prediction of natural phenomena to socio‐economic impact assessment)

Development of a water‐level prediction system for small and medium rivers

ICHARM conducts research and practical activities worldwide in cooperation with various domestic and international organizations and has produced many award‐winning papers and technologies.
(2) Risk assessment on water‐related disasters

ICHARM developed the flood early
warning system (FEWS) for the Niger
and Volta River Basins in West Africa
using the WEB‐RRI model, a model
capable of computing the water andheat budget at the ground surface
and simulating rainfall, runoff, andinundation. The system has been
made publicly available to 11 west
African countries and relevantorganizations in the basin, helping
them share information.

Partners: The Universityof Tokyo Earth
Observation Data
Integration and Fusion
Research Initiative(EDITORIA), West Africa
Center for agriculture,
meteorology, andhydrology
Funding: UNESCO

Award: Best Presentation Awardof river engineering, JSCEPWRI Priority Dissemination
Technology: Rainfall‐Runoff‐Inundation
Analysis Model

ICHARM developed the Rainfall‐Sediment‐Runoff (RSR) model,
capable of analyzing the behavior of water, sediment, anddriftwood produced in a basin during a heavy rainfall event in an
integrated manner. The model was tested on past floods andverified for its capability. Studies have also revealed that themodel can be used for hazard mapping and evacuation
forecasting and warning.
Field investigation

Simulation

Output visualization using online
information dissemination on DIAS:
in‐situ rainfall, satellite rainfall,calibrated rainfall, inundation
simulations

Development of optimized dam operation
based on dam inflow prediction
ICHARM jointly developed a dam operation method with
an electric power company to increase dams’ flood control
capacity and power generation efficiency using dam inflow
forecasts. This development has shown that dam
operation can be modified to improve the capacity ofhydroelectric dams for power generation and flood control
simultaneously.
Partner: Chubu Electric Power Company

Discharge (m3/s)

Development of models to reproduce
and predict flood inundation with sediment

Development of a flood early warning system(FEWS) for West Africa(3) Monitoring and prediction of changes inwater‐related disaster risks

Storage water level (m)(1) Data collection, storage, sharing, andstatistics on water‐related disasters

Forecasted inflow
Observed inflow
Water used for
power generation

Prediction of water‐related disaster risks (floods, droughts)
due to climate change (Solo and Davao River basins)
Funding: Integrated Research Program for Advancing Climate Models by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Partners: Kyoto University Disaster Prevention Research Institute,organizations of Indonesia and the Philippines

Number of deposited driftwood pieces

Utilization of satellite rainfall products
in data‐scarce areas
ICHARM studied the optimal density and placement patternof ground rain gauges for bias correction by taking the Fuji
River basin in Japan as an example. The results showed thata certain number of ground rain gauges in a basin can
provide enough ground rainfall data to correct real‐timesatellite rainfall products, making it possible to perform
sufficiently accurate runoff analysis.

Estimation of rainfall and inundation area using satellite data
(Myanmar agriculture development support project: technicalsupport for flood simulation of areas downstream of the Swa
Chaung Dam)
ICHARM created rainfall data whose temporal and spatial
resolutions were increased by using GSMaP data bias‐
corrected with ground rainfall. The rainfall data withimproved resolutions were applied to a runoff‐inundation
model to simulate an earth dam failure in Myanmar. The
inundation area was identified by comparing SAR images
before and after a flood and detecting changes in vegetation
surface due to flood flow. The identified inundation area wasused to verify inundation models.
Funding: World BankICHARM developed the Water‐Energy‐Budget Rainfall‐Runoff‐
Inundation (WEB‐RRI) model by combining a water‐energy budget
model capable of representing the transport of water and energy (heatand radiation) in the atmosphere‐vegetation‐soil system and an RRI
model capable of simultaneously calculating river runoff and flooding ina basin. ICHARM has applied this model to the Solo River basin ofIndonesia and the Davao River basin of the Philippines to study the
impact of global warming on precipitation, flood runoff inundation, andwater resources.

Observed outflow
Estimated outflow

The relationship between the estimation accuracy of the hydrologic
model using the bias‐corrected satellite rainfall products (vertical axis,
Nash coefficient) and the number of rain gauges installed in the basin tocollect data for bias correction (horizontal axis).

Development of a CLVDAS‐based droughtmonitoring system for West Africa
Funding: World BankICHARM developed CLVDAS on DIAS for West Africa. CLVDAS is a system consisting of passive microwave remote sensing techniques, aland surface model, a dynamic vegetation model, and a data assimilation scheme. ICHARM investigated agricultural droughts that
occurred in the area from 2003 to 2018 using CLVDAS to calculate soil moisture and vegetation water content from the ground surface
to the root layer.
Vegetation water content

Root‐layer soil
moisture

Dam‐failure inundation area estimatedusing SAR data

Inundation simulation result

The Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development Program (SATREPS)• The Project for Development of a Hybrid Water‐Related Disaster Risk Assessment Technology for Sustainable
Local Economic Development Policy under Climate Change in the Republic of the Philippines (HyDEPP‐SATREPS)
Principal organization: ICHARM
Partner organizations: The University of Tokyo, Tohoku University, Shiga Prefectural University, Nagoya University, Kyoto
University, Philippine organizations (University of the Philippines, Department of Science and Technology, etc.)

A scene from an investigation on damage
caused by Typhoon No. 19 in 2019
(Tochigi Prefecture, Japan)

A scene from an investigation ofriverbank erosion in February 2020
(Sittaung River, Myanmar)

Funding: JST, JICA

Joint projects:
 Regional Resilience Enhancement through Establishment of Area‐BCM at Industry Complexes in Thailand Research for the development of a real‐time flood forecasting system using rainfall forecasts for Argentina

教育・研修プログラム
Effective
capacity building

Select a water-level observation pointon the map for forecasting results

Award: River Symposium River Technology Paper Award, JSCE

Collecting water levels, channel conditions, etc., isessential to reduce flood disaster risks. Prefectures areusually responsible for carrying out this task for small
and medium rivers, but they often have difficulty
performing it because there are so many. To help themwith the task, ICHARM has developed a simple, low‐
cost system capable of predicting water levels withadequate accuracy and short computation time.

No. of Master’s program
students by country
Display screen

Observed water level

Forecasted water level

・Forecasting period: up to 6 hours ahead
・Information update interval: 30 minutes
・ICHARM has created models for 200 rivers nationwide and has been
trying to incorporate them into the flood forecasting system.

IDRIS: one‐stop disaster information system

VR‐driven flood experience system

Partners: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Iwaizumi of Iwate Prefecture,
Tsuruoka of Yamagata PrefecturePartner: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Kumamoto of Kumamoto PrefectureAward: 2019 Institute of Social Safety Science Technology Award

ICHARM developed a virtual flood experience system using VR
technology. The system reproduces a flood event using the RRI
model and a flood inundation model that are fed with spatial
information collected by means of UAVs, ground laser surveys,
and photogrammetry. It also allows users to play an avatar andvirtually try out evacuation during flooding.

ICHARM developed the
ICHARM Disaster Risk
Information
System(IDRIS)formunicipalitiesinmountainous areas withlittleevacuation
information. This basic
system is designed tohelp operate a portalsite that works as aone‐stop flood disaster
IDRIS operating on DIAS andinformation center for
IDRIS’s display for smartphones
residents to use inemergencies and to improve their disaster preparedness innormal times. The system has been modified to accommodate
the needs of smartphone users.

Defining critical situations in which local government officers have a
hard time making sensible decisions because they panic, don’t knowwhat to do, are confused or in dilemma, etc., during an emergency
response effort, ICHARM collected typical critical situations from past
flood disaster reports and published as the “Collection of Critical
Situations during Flood Emergency Response.”
PWRI Priority
Technology for
Dissemination:
Collection of Critical
Situations during
Flood Emergency
Response (local
government version)Award: 2021 MLIT
National Land andInfrastructure
Technology ResearchGroup Outstanding
Research Award

Development of OSS‐SR and “Facilitators” for Davao City
ICHARM developed the Online Synthesis System for Sustainability and
Resilience (OSS‐SR) and has been using it in e‐learning programs tofoster “Facilitators.” The OSS‐SR for Davao City, the Philippines,
integrates knowledge and information on real‐time flood forecasting
and climate change impact assessment and allows local stakeholders
to learn about them through e‐learning programs.

The system can accurately reproduce rain clouds, rainfall, flooding, etc. It allows
people to play an avatar and virtually experience flooding, as well as evacuation
and rescue efforts during flooding.

An advanced disaster risk assessment method
for more accurate information
In an effort to 100%90%develop a method
80%
for more accurate
70%
assessmentsof60%
Headquarters: Direct loss
本社_直接被害有り
Headquarters: Only indirect loss
50%
本社_間接被害のみ
disaster risks that
Branch offices: Direct loss
支社_直接被害有り
40%
had not been
Branch offices : Only indirect loss
支社_間接被害のみ
30%
Factories: Direct loss
生産拠点_直接被害有り
evaluatedby
20%
Factories: Only indirect loss
生産拠点_間接被害のみ
10%conventional0%methods, ICHARM
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
conducteda
営業停止日数（日）Businesssuspension days
questionnaire
survey for businesses and analyzed the impact of adisaster on their production and sales activities. The
results revealed the relationship between the presence orabsence of direct and indirect damage and the days ofbusiness suspension.

ICHARM provides various educational and training
programs to improve individuals' problem‐solving
skills and disaster management organizations'disaster response capabilities.
ICHARM also holds follow‐up seminars and otheractivities to help trainees better understand theissues they face even after they return home, as
well as to get feedback to improve the training
programs further.

1. Master’s program (one year): This one‐year master’s program, officially titled “Water‐related Risk
Management Course of Disaster Management Policy Program (JICA Training Program: Training forExpert on Flood‐Related Disaster Mitigation),” has been provided since 2007 as a joint effort with JICA
and GRIPS, mainly targeted at officials of administrative organizations. The first half of the course
consists mostly of lectures and hands‐on practices, while the second half requires the students to workon graduation theses. In addition, several study trips are conducted during the program. As of
September 2022, a total of 170 students graduated with a master’s degree.
2. Doctoral program (three years): The doctoral program, officially titled “Disaster Management
Program,” has been provided since 2010 in collaboration with GRIPS. By September 2020, 15 students
had earned a doctoral degree, and nine from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Nepal, the Philippines, andPakistan were enrolled as of October 2022.
3. Short‐term training (several days): Short‐term training programs are conducted for participants tolearn technology and knowledge about water‐related disaster management. ICHARM has conductedpart of a JICA‐led program on water‐related disaster risk reduction since 2019, when 12 participantsfrom nine countries attended the first‐year program.
4. Follow‐up activities: Seminars and other events have been held to support program graduates in
activities in which they are involved after they return home.

Follow‐up seminars

Virtual flood experience system

Collection of critical situations
during flood emergency response

Surface and root‐layer soil
moisture and vegetation watercontent calculated by CLVDAS

Field investigation
ICHARM researches how flooding and flood‐related
sediment and driftwood change the landform of anarea extending from a river’s upper reach to its mouthby conducting field investigations, sample analyses,
and numerical analyses, and also studies applicationsof the research results to assess disaster risks.

Simulation results (October 2018): the simulation was conductedusing the top 25% time‐series discharge while aiming more at flood
control than at power generation (i.e., by assuming dam water
releases before an event) due to a high storage level at the time of
dam inflow forecasting.

Surface soil moisture

Inundation
marks

Development of a real-time flood
forecasting system(5) Support in improving the applicability of water‐related disaster management

Simulation of river discharge,
water level, and inundation area
The outline of West Africa’s FEWS

Partner: Cabinet Office PRISM

Ratio
of Recovery
営業再開の割合

Innovative Research

Master’s and doctoral students
after the graduation ceremony(Sep. 2022)

Creating an infection‐resistanteducational environment

ICHARM has held a follow‐up seminar, includingsite visits, once a year since 2007 in a country ofgraduates from ICHARM educational and training
programs. This annual meeting is an excellent
opportunity for ICHARM to see how graduates areapplying the knowledge and skills they learned
through the programs, as well as to share issues
they face in their practices. Such information isused to improve the programs and research
activities. On February 25, 2022, despite the
COVID‐19 pandemic, we decided to hold aseminar online for the first time, in which two
special speakers and 69 master’s and doctoral
graduates participated.

To continue educational programs amid the spread of the
new coronavirus infection, ICHARM introduced devices,such as electronic blackboards, and systems that allowed
students to attend lectures online in real time even when
they were unable to come to Japan. We took thoroughinfection control measures when in‐person classes
became possible, for example, by setting up partitions andintroducing flexible class management in which classes
were conducted face‐to‐face, remotely, or in combination,
depending on infection status.

Efficient information networking
International Flood Initiative (IFI)

Partners: UNESCO, WMO, UNU, UNDRR, etc.

The International Flood Initiative (IFI) is a framework for international organizations, such as UNESCO, the World MeteorologicalOrganization, the United Nations University, and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, to cooperate in promoting
global flood management. ICHARM has been its secretariat since its foundation.
On October 31, 2016, the Jakarta Declaration was adopted for interdisciplinary cooperation to further promote flood risk
reduction and sustainable development. In response, ICHARM, in collaboration with the IFI partners, has been conducting a
project to establish a “Platform on Water and Disasters” in flood‐prone countries to reduce water‐related disaster risks.

Typhoon Committee

ICHARM Webinar

Award: 2020 Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award, with the Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Infrastructure Development Institute (IDI)
Partners: The
Philippine’s
Departmentof ScienceandTechnology,etc.

The Typhoon Committee is an intergovernmental community formed
in 1968 to promote and coordinate planning and implementation
measures to minimize human and property damage from typhoons in
the Asia‐Pacific region. As chairman of the Hydrology Subcommittee,
ICHARM will lead the discussions together with the MLIT. ICHARM
has contributed greatly to support Committee's flood hazard
mapping project and improving flood forecasting and management
capabilities in the area through the use of satellite products
developed and provided by JAXA.

ICHARM Webinar is held once a year to disseminate
ICHARM's research activities to master's and doctoral
students and young researchers in universities andresearch institutes in Japan and abroad

(4) Proposal, evaluation, and application of policy ideas for water‐related risk reduction

End‐to‐End approach (from data collection to the analysis, assessment and prediction of natural phenomena to socio‐economic impact assessment)

Development of a water‐level prediction system for small and medium rivers

ICHARM conducts research and practical activities worldwide in cooperation with various domestic and international organizations and has produced many award‐winning papers and technologies.
(2) Risk assessment on water‐related disasters

ICHARM developed the flood early
warning system (FEWS) for the Niger
and Volta River Basins in West Africa
using the WEB‐RRI model, a model
capable of computing the water andheat budget at the ground surface
and simulating rainfall, runoff, andinundation. The system has been
made publicly available to 11 west
African countries and relevantorganizations in the basin, helping
them share information.

Partners: The Universityof Tokyo Earth
Observation Data
Integration and Fusion
Research Initiative(EDITORIA), West Africa
Center for agriculture,
meteorology, andhydrology
Funding: UNESCO

Award: Best Presentation Awardof river engineering, JSCEPWRI Priority Dissemination
Technology: Rainfall‐Runoff‐Inundation
Analysis Model

ICHARM developed the Rainfall‐Sediment‐Runoff (RSR) model,
capable of analyzing the behavior of water, sediment, anddriftwood produced in a basin during a heavy rainfall event in an
integrated manner. The model was tested on past floods andverified for its capability. Studies have also revealed that themodel can be used for hazard mapping and evacuation
forecasting and warning.
Field investigation

Simulation

Output visualization using online
information dissemination on DIAS:
in‐situ rainfall, satellite rainfall,calibrated rainfall, inundation
simulations

Development of optimized dam operation
based on dam inflow prediction
ICHARM jointly developed a dam operation method with
an electric power company to increase dams’ flood control
capacity and power generation efficiency using dam inflow
forecasts. This development has shown that dam
operation can be modified to improve the capacity ofhydroelectric dams for power generation and flood control
simultaneously.
Partner: Chubu Electric Power Company

Discharge (m3/s)

Development of models to reproduce
and predict flood inundation with sediment

Development of a flood early warning system(FEWS) for West Africa(3) Monitoring and prediction of changes inwater‐related disaster risks

Storage water level (m)(1) Data collection, storage, sharing, andstatistics on water‐related disasters

Forecasted inflow
Observed inflow
Water used for
power generation

Prediction of water‐related disaster risks (floods, droughts)
due to climate change (Solo and Davao River basins)
Funding: Integrated Research Program for Advancing Climate Models by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Partners: Kyoto University Disaster Prevention Research Institute,organizations of Indonesia and the Philippines

Number of deposited driftwood pieces

Utilization of satellite rainfall products
in data‐scarce areas
ICHARM studied the optimal density and placement patternof ground rain gauges for bias correction by taking the Fuji
River basin in Japan as an example. The results showed thata certain number of ground rain gauges in a basin can
provide enough ground rainfall data to correct real‐timesatellite rainfall products, making it possible to perform
sufficiently accurate runoff analysis.

Estimation of rainfall and inundation area using satellite data
(Myanmar agriculture development support project: technicalsupport for flood simulation of areas downstream of the Swa
Chaung Dam)
ICHARM created rainfall data whose temporal and spatial
resolutions were increased by using GSMaP data bias‐
corrected with ground rainfall. The rainfall data withimproved resolutions were applied to a runoff‐inundation
model to simulate an earth dam failure in Myanmar. The
inundation area was identified by comparing SAR images
before and after a flood and detecting changes in vegetation
surface due to flood flow. The identified inundation area wasused to verify inundation models.
Funding: World BankICHARM developed the Water‐Energy‐Budget Rainfall‐Runoff‐
Inundation (WEB‐RRI) model by combining a water‐energy budget
model capable of representing the transport of water and energy (heatand radiation) in the atmosphere‐vegetation‐soil system and an RRI
model capable of simultaneously calculating river runoff and flooding ina basin. ICHARM has applied this model to the Solo River basin ofIndonesia and the Davao River basin of the Philippines to study the
impact of global warming on precipitation, flood runoff inundation, andwater resources.

Observed outflow
Estimated outflow

The relationship between the estimation accuracy of the hydrologic
model using the bias‐corrected satellite rainfall products (vertical axis,
Nash coefficient) and the number of rain gauges installed in the basin tocollect data for bias correction (horizontal axis).

Development of a CLVDAS‐based droughtmonitoring system for West Africa
Funding: World BankICHARM developed CLVDAS on DIAS for West Africa. CLVDAS is a system consisting of passive microwave remote sensing techniques, aland surface model, a dynamic vegetation model, and a data assimilation scheme. ICHARM investigated agricultural droughts that
occurred in the area from 2003 to 2018 using CLVDAS to calculate soil moisture and vegetation water content from the ground surface
to the root layer.
Vegetation water content

Root‐layer soil
moisture

Dam‐failure inundation area estimatedusing SAR data

Inundation simulation result

The Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development Program (SATREPS)• The Project for Development of a Hybrid Water‐Related Disaster Risk Assessment Technology for Sustainable
Local Economic Development Policy under Climate Change in the Republic of the Philippines (HyDEPP‐SATREPS)
Principal organization: ICHARM
Partner organizations: The University of Tokyo, Tohoku University, Shiga Prefectural University, Nagoya University, Kyoto
University, Philippine organizations (University of the Philippines, Department of Science and Technology, etc.)

A scene from an investigation on damage
caused by Typhoon No. 19 in 2019
(Tochigi Prefecture, Japan)

A scene from an investigation ofriverbank erosion in February 2020
(Sittaung River, Myanmar)

Funding: JST, JICA

Joint projects:
 Regional Resilience Enhancement through Establishment of Area‐BCM at Industry Complexes in Thailand Research for the development of a real‐time flood forecasting system using rainfall forecasts for Argentina

教育・研修プログラム
Effective
capacity building

Select a water-level observation pointon the map for forecasting results

Award: River Symposium River Technology Paper Award, JSCE

Collecting water levels, channel conditions, etc., isessential to reduce flood disaster risks. Prefectures areusually responsible for carrying out this task for small
and medium rivers, but they often have difficulty
performing it because there are so many. To help themwith the task, ICHARM has developed a simple, low‐
cost system capable of predicting water levels withadequate accuracy and short computation time.

No. of Master’s program
students by country
Display screen

Observed water level

Forecasted water level

・Forecasting period: up to 6 hours ahead
・Information update interval: 30 minutes
・ICHARM has created models for 200 rivers nationwide and has been
trying to incorporate them into the flood forecasting system.

IDRIS: one‐stop disaster information system

VR‐driven flood experience system

Partners: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Iwaizumi of Iwate Prefecture,
Tsuruoka of Yamagata PrefecturePartner: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Kumamoto of Kumamoto PrefectureAward: 2019 Institute of Social Safety Science Technology Award

ICHARM developed a virtual flood experience system using VR
technology. The system reproduces a flood event using the RRI
model and a flood inundation model that are fed with spatial
information collected by means of UAVs, ground laser surveys,
and photogrammetry. It also allows users to play an avatar andvirtually try out evacuation during flooding.

ICHARM developed the
ICHARM Disaster Risk
Information
System(IDRIS)formunicipalitiesinmountainous areas withlittleevacuation
information. This basic
system is designed tohelp operate a portalsite that works as aone‐stop flood disaster
IDRIS operating on DIAS andinformation center for
IDRIS’s display for smartphones
residents to use inemergencies and to improve their disaster preparedness innormal times. The system has been modified to accommodate
the needs of smartphone users.

Defining critical situations in which local government officers have a
hard time making sensible decisions because they panic, don’t knowwhat to do, are confused or in dilemma, etc., during an emergency
response effort, ICHARM collected typical critical situations from past
flood disaster reports and published as the “Collection of Critical
Situations during Flood Emergency Response.”
PWRI Priority
Technology for
Dissemination:
Collection of Critical
Situations during
Flood Emergency
Response (local
government version)Award: 2021 MLIT
National Land andInfrastructure
Technology ResearchGroup Outstanding
Research Award

Development of OSS‐SR and “Facilitators” for Davao City
ICHARM developed the Online Synthesis System for Sustainability and
Resilience (OSS‐SR) and has been using it in e‐learning programs tofoster “Facilitators.” The OSS‐SR for Davao City, the Philippines,
integrates knowledge and information on real‐time flood forecasting
and climate change impact assessment and allows local stakeholders
to learn about them through e‐learning programs.

The system can accurately reproduce rain clouds, rainfall, flooding, etc. It allows
people to play an avatar and virtually experience flooding, as well as evacuation
and rescue efforts during flooding.

An advanced disaster risk assessment method
for more accurate information
In an effort to 100%90%develop a method
80%
for more accurate
70%
assessmentsof60%
Headquarters: Direct loss
本社_直接被害有り
Headquarters: Only indirect loss
50%
本社_間接被害のみ
disaster risks that
Branch offices: Direct loss
支社_直接被害有り
40%
had not been
Branch offices : Only indirect loss
支社_間接被害のみ
30%
Factories: Direct loss
生産拠点_直接被害有り
evaluatedby
20%
Factories: Only indirect loss
生産拠点_間接被害のみ
10%conventional0%methods, ICHARM
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
conducteda
営業停止日数（日）Businesssuspension days
questionnaire
survey for businesses and analyzed the impact of adisaster on their production and sales activities. The
results revealed the relationship between the presence orabsence of direct and indirect damage and the days ofbusiness suspension.

ICHARM provides various educational and training
programs to improve individuals' problem‐solving
skills and disaster management organizations'disaster response capabilities.
ICHARM also holds follow‐up seminars and otheractivities to help trainees better understand theissues they face even after they return home, as
well as to get feedback to improve the training
programs further.

1. Master’s program (one year): This one‐year master’s program, officially titled “Water‐related Risk
Management Course of Disaster Management Policy Program (JICA Training Program: Training forExpert on Flood‐Related Disaster Mitigation),” has been provided since 2007 as a joint effort with JICA
and GRIPS, mainly targeted at officials of administrative organizations. The first half of the course
consists mostly of lectures and hands‐on practices, while the second half requires the students to workon graduation theses. In addition, several study trips are conducted during the program. As of
September 2022, a total of 170 students graduated with a master’s degree.
2. Doctoral program (three years): The doctoral program, officially titled “Disaster Management
Program,” has been provided since 2010 in collaboration with GRIPS. By September 2020, 15 students
had earned a doctoral degree, and nine from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Nepal, the Philippines, andPakistan were enrolled as of October 2022.
3. Short‐term training (several days): Short‐term training programs are conducted for participants tolearn technology and knowledge about water‐related disaster management. ICHARM has conductedpart of a JICA‐led program on water‐related disaster risk reduction since 2019, when 12 participantsfrom nine countries attended the first‐year program.
4. Follow‐up activities: Seminars and other events have been held to support program graduates in
activities in which they are involved after they return home.

Follow‐up seminars

Virtual flood experience system

Collection of critical situations
during flood emergency response

Surface and root‐layer soil
moisture and vegetation watercontent calculated by CLVDAS

Field investigation
ICHARM researches how flooding and flood‐related
sediment and driftwood change the landform of anarea extending from a river’s upper reach to its mouthby conducting field investigations, sample analyses,
and numerical analyses, and also studies applicationsof the research results to assess disaster risks.

Simulation results (October 2018): the simulation was conductedusing the top 25% time‐series discharge while aiming more at flood
control than at power generation (i.e., by assuming dam water
releases before an event) due to a high storage level at the time of
dam inflow forecasting.

Surface soil moisture

Inundation
marks

Development of a real-time flood
forecasting system(5) Support in improving the applicability of water‐related disaster management

Simulation of river discharge,
water level, and inundation area
The outline of West Africa’s FEWS

Partner: Cabinet Office PRISM

Ratio
of Recovery
営業再開の割合

Innovative Research

Master’s and doctoral students
after the graduation ceremony(Sep. 2022)

Creating an infection‐resistanteducational environment

ICHARM has held a follow‐up seminar, includingsite visits, once a year since 2007 in a country ofgraduates from ICHARM educational and training
programs. This annual meeting is an excellent
opportunity for ICHARM to see how graduates areapplying the knowledge and skills they learned
through the programs, as well as to share issues
they face in their practices. Such information isused to improve the programs and research
activities. On February 25, 2022, despite the
COVID‐19 pandemic, we decided to hold aseminar online for the first time, in which two
special speakers and 69 master’s and doctoral
graduates participated.

To continue educational programs amid the spread of the
new coronavirus infection, ICHARM introduced devices,such as electronic blackboards, and systems that allowed
students to attend lectures online in real time even when
they were unable to come to Japan. We took thoroughinfection control measures when in‐person classes
became possible, for example, by setting up partitions andintroducing flexible class management in which classes
were conducted face‐to‐face, remotely, or in combination,
depending on infection status.

Efficient information networking
International Flood Initiative (IFI)

Partners: UNESCO, WMO, UNU, UNDRR, etc.

The International Flood Initiative (IFI) is a framework for international organizations, such as UNESCO, the World MeteorologicalOrganization, the United Nations University, and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, to cooperate in promoting
global flood management. ICHARM has been its secretariat since its foundation.
On October 31, 2016, the Jakarta Declaration was adopted for interdisciplinary cooperation to further promote flood risk
reduction and sustainable development. In response, ICHARM, in collaboration with the IFI partners, has been conducting a
project to establish a “Platform on Water and Disasters” in flood‐prone countries to reduce water‐related disaster risks.

Typhoon Committee

ICHARM Webinar

Award: 2020 Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award, with the Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Infrastructure Development Institute (IDI)
Partners: The
Philippine’s
Departmentof ScienceandTechnology,etc.

The Typhoon Committee is an intergovernmental community formed
in 1968 to promote and coordinate planning and implementation
measures to minimize human and property damage from typhoons in
the Asia‐Pacific region. As chairman of the Hydrology Subcommittee,
ICHARM will lead the discussions together with the MLIT. ICHARM
has contributed greatly to support Committee's flood hazard
mapping project and improving flood forecasting and management
capabilities in the area through the use of satellite products
developed and provided by JAXA.

ICHARM Webinar is held once a year to disseminate
ICHARM's research activities to master's and doctoral
students and young researchers in universities andresearch institutes in Japan and abroad

(4) Proposal, evaluation, and application of policy ideas for water‐related risk reduction

End‐to‐End approach (from data collection to the analysis, assessment and prediction of natural phenomena to socio‐economic impact assessment)

Development of a water‐level prediction system for small and medium rivers

ICHARM conducts research and practical activities worldwide in cooperation with various domestic and international organizations and has produced many award‐winning papers and technologies.
(2) Risk assessment on water‐related disasters

ICHARM developed the flood early
warning system (FEWS) for the Niger
and Volta River Basins in West Africa
using the WEB‐RRI model, a model
capable of computing the water andheat budget at the ground surface
and simulating rainfall, runoff, andinundation. The system has been
made publicly available to 11 west
African countries and relevantorganizations in the basin, helping
them share information.

Partners: The Universityof Tokyo Earth
Observation Data
Integration and Fusion
Research Initiative(EDITORIA), West Africa
Center for agriculture,
meteorology, andhydrology
Funding: UNESCO

Award: Best Presentation Awardof river engineering, JSCEPWRI Priority Dissemination
Technology: Rainfall‐Runoff‐Inundation
Analysis Model

ICHARM developed the Rainfall‐Sediment‐Runoff (RSR) model,
capable of analyzing the behavior of water, sediment, anddriftwood produced in a basin during a heavy rainfall event in an
integrated manner. The model was tested on past floods andverified for its capability. Studies have also revealed that themodel can be used for hazard mapping and evacuation
forecasting and warning.
Field investigation

Simulation

Output visualization using online
information dissemination on DIAS:
in‐situ rainfall, satellite rainfall,calibrated rainfall, inundation
simulations

Development of optimized dam operation
based on dam inflow prediction
ICHARM jointly developed a dam operation method with
an electric power company to increase dams’ flood control
capacity and power generation efficiency using dam inflow
forecasts. This development has shown that dam
operation can be modified to improve the capacity ofhydroelectric dams for power generation and flood control
simultaneously.
Partner: Chubu Electric Power Company

Discharge (m3/s)

Development of models to reproduce
and predict flood inundation with sediment

Development of a flood early warning system(FEWS) for West Africa(3) Monitoring and prediction of changes inwater‐related disaster risks

Storage water level (m)(1) Data collection, storage, sharing, andstatistics on water‐related disasters

Forecasted inflow
Observed inflow
Water used for
power generation

Prediction of water‐related disaster risks (floods, droughts)
due to climate change (Solo and Davao River basins)
Funding: Integrated Research Program for Advancing Climate Models by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Partners: Kyoto University Disaster Prevention Research Institute,organizations of Indonesia and the Philippines

Number of deposited driftwood pieces

Utilization of satellite rainfall products
in data‐scarce areas
ICHARM studied the optimal density and placement patternof ground rain gauges for bias correction by taking the Fuji
River basin in Japan as an example. The results showed thata certain number of ground rain gauges in a basin can
provide enough ground rainfall data to correct real‐timesatellite rainfall products, making it possible to perform
sufficiently accurate runoff analysis.

Estimation of rainfall and inundation area using satellite data
(Myanmar agriculture development support project: technicalsupport for flood simulation of areas downstream of the Swa
Chaung Dam)
ICHARM created rainfall data whose temporal and spatial
resolutions were increased by using GSMaP data bias‐
corrected with ground rainfall. The rainfall data withimproved resolutions were applied to a runoff‐inundation
model to simulate an earth dam failure in Myanmar. The
inundation area was identified by comparing SAR images
before and after a flood and detecting changes in vegetation
surface due to flood flow. The identified inundation area wasused to verify inundation models.
Funding: World BankICHARM developed the Water‐Energy‐Budget Rainfall‐Runoff‐
Inundation (WEB‐RRI) model by combining a water‐energy budget
model capable of representing the transport of water and energy (heatand radiation) in the atmosphere‐vegetation‐soil system and an RRI
model capable of simultaneously calculating river runoff and flooding ina basin. ICHARM has applied this model to the Solo River basin ofIndonesia and the Davao River basin of the Philippines to study the
impact of global warming on precipitation, flood runoff inundation, andwater resources.

Observed outflow
Estimated outflow

The relationship between the estimation accuracy of the hydrologic
model using the bias‐corrected satellite rainfall products (vertical axis,
Nash coefficient) and the number of rain gauges installed in the basin tocollect data for bias correction (horizontal axis).

Development of a CLVDAS‐based droughtmonitoring system for West Africa
Funding: World BankICHARM developed CLVDAS on DIAS for West Africa. CLVDAS is a system consisting of passive microwave remote sensing techniques, aland surface model, a dynamic vegetation model, and a data assimilation scheme. ICHARM investigated agricultural droughts that
occurred in the area from 2003 to 2018 using CLVDAS to calculate soil moisture and vegetation water content from the ground surface
to the root layer.
Vegetation water content

Root‐layer soil
moisture

Dam‐failure inundation area estimatedusing SAR data

Inundation simulation result

The Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development Program (SATREPS)• The Project for Development of a Hybrid Water‐Related Disaster Risk Assessment Technology for Sustainable
Local Economic Development Policy under Climate Change in the Republic of the Philippines (HyDEPP‐SATREPS)
Principal organization: ICHARM
Partner organizations: The University of Tokyo, Tohoku University, Shiga Prefectural University, Nagoya University, Kyoto
University, Philippine organizations (University of the Philippines, Department of Science and Technology, etc.)

A scene from an investigation on damage
caused by Typhoon No. 19 in 2019
(Tochigi Prefecture, Japan)

A scene from an investigation ofriverbank erosion in February 2020
(Sittaung River, Myanmar)

Funding: JST, JICA

Joint projects:
 Regional Resilience Enhancement through Establishment of Area‐BCM at Industry Complexes in Thailand Research for the development of a real‐time flood forecasting system using rainfall forecasts for Argentina

教育・研修プログラム
Effective
capacity building

Select a water-level observation pointon the map for forecasting results

Award: River Symposium River Technology Paper Award, JSCE

Collecting water levels, channel conditions, etc., isessential to reduce flood disaster risks. Prefectures areusually responsible for carrying out this task for small
and medium rivers, but they often have difficulty
performing it because there are so many. To help themwith the task, ICHARM has developed a simple, low‐
cost system capable of predicting water levels withadequate accuracy and short computation time.

No. of Master’s program
students by country
Display screen

Observed water level

Forecasted water level

・Forecasting period: up to 6 hours ahead
・Information update interval: 30 minutes
・ICHARM has created models for 200 rivers nationwide and has been
trying to incorporate them into the flood forecasting system.

IDRIS: one‐stop disaster information system

VR‐driven flood experience system

Partners: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Iwaizumi of Iwate Prefecture,
Tsuruoka of Yamagata PrefecturePartner: Aga of Niigata Prefecture, Kumamoto of Kumamoto PrefectureAward: 2019 Institute of Social Safety Science Technology Award

ICHARM developed a virtual flood experience system using VR
technology. The system reproduces a flood event using the RRI
model and a flood inundation model that are fed with spatial
information collected by means of UAVs, ground laser surveys,
and photogrammetry. It also allows users to play an avatar andvirtually try out evacuation during flooding.

ICHARM developed the
ICHARM Disaster Risk
Information
System(IDRIS)formunicipalitiesinmountainous areas withlittleevacuation
information. This basic
system is designed tohelp operate a portalsite that works as aone‐stop flood disaster
IDRIS operating on DIAS andinformation center for
IDRIS’s display for smartphones
residents to use inemergencies and to improve their disaster preparedness innormal times. The system has been modified to accommodate
the needs of smartphone users.

Defining critical situations in which local government officers have a
hard time making sensible decisions because they panic, don’t knowwhat to do, are confused or in dilemma, etc., during an emergency
response effort, ICHARM collected typical critical situations from past
flood disaster reports and published as the “Collection of Critical
Situations during Flood Emergency Response.”
PWRI Priority
Technology for
Dissemination:
Collection of Critical
Situations during
Flood Emergency
Response (local
government version)Award: 2021 MLIT
National Land andInfrastructure
Technology ResearchGroup Outstanding
Research Award

Development of OSS‐SR and “Facilitators” for Davao City
ICHARM developed the Online Synthesis System for Sustainability and
Resilience (OSS‐SR) and has been using it in e‐learning programs tofoster “Facilitators.” The OSS‐SR for Davao City, the Philippines,
integrates knowledge and information on real‐time flood forecasting
and climate change impact assessment and allows local stakeholders
to learn about them through e‐learning programs.

The system can accurately reproduce rain clouds, rainfall, flooding, etc. It allows
people to play an avatar and virtually experience flooding, as well as evacuation
and rescue efforts during flooding.

An advanced disaster risk assessment method
for more accurate information
In an effort to 100%90%develop a method
80%
for more accurate
70%
assessmentsof60%
Headquarters: Direct loss
本社_直接被害有り
Headquarters: Only indirect loss
50%
本社_間接被害のみ
disaster risks that
Branch offices: Direct loss
支社_直接被害有り
40%
had not been
Branch offices : Only indirect loss
支社_間接被害のみ
30%
Factories: Direct loss
生産拠点_直接被害有り
evaluatedby
20%
Factories: Only indirect loss
生産拠点_間接被害のみ
10%conventional0%methods, ICHARM
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
conducteda
営業停止日数（日）Businesssuspension days
questionnaire
survey for businesses and analyzed the impact of adisaster on their production and sales activities. The
results revealed the relationship between the presence orabsence of direct and indirect damage and the days ofbusiness suspension.

ICHARM provides various educational and training
programs to improve individuals' problem‐solving
skills and disaster management organizations'disaster response capabilities.
ICHARM also holds follow‐up seminars and otheractivities to help trainees better understand theissues they face even after they return home, as
well as to get feedback to improve the training
programs further.

1. Master’s program (one year): This one‐year master’s program, officially titled “Water‐related Risk
Management Course of Disaster Management Policy Program (JICA Training Program: Training forExpert on Flood‐Related Disaster Mitigation),” has been provided since 2007 as a joint effort with JICA
and GRIPS, mainly targeted at officials of administrative organizations. The first half of the course
consists mostly of lectures and hands‐on practices, while the second half requires the students to workon graduation theses. In addition, several study trips are conducted during the program. As of
September 2022, a total of 170 students graduated with a master’s degree.
2. Doctoral program (three years): The doctoral program, officially titled “Disaster Management
Program,” has been provided since 2010 in collaboration with GRIPS. By September 2020, 15 students
had earned a doctoral degree, and nine from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Nepal, the Philippines, andPakistan were enrolled as of October 2022.
3. Short‐term training (several days): Short‐term training programs are conducted for participants tolearn technology and knowledge about water‐related disaster management. ICHARM has conductedpart of a JICA‐led program on water‐related disaster risk reduction since 2019, when 12 participantsfrom nine countries attended the first‐year program.
4. Follow‐up activities: Seminars and other events have been held to support program graduates in
activities in which they are involved after they return home.

Follow‐up seminars

Virtual flood experience system

Collection of critical situations
during flood emergency response

Surface and root‐layer soil
moisture and vegetation watercontent calculated by CLVDAS

Field investigation
ICHARM researches how flooding and flood‐related
sediment and driftwood change the landform of anarea extending from a river’s upper reach to its mouthby conducting field investigations, sample analyses,
and numerical analyses, and also studies applicationsof the research results to assess disaster risks.

Simulation results (October 2018): the simulation was conductedusing the top 25% time‐series discharge while aiming more at flood
control than at power generation (i.e., by assuming dam water
releases before an event) due to a high storage level at the time of
dam inflow forecasting.

Surface soil moisture

Inundation
marks

Development of a real-time flood
forecasting system(5) Support in improving the applicability of water‐related disaster management

Simulation of river discharge,
water level, and inundation area
The outline of West Africa’s FEWS

Partner: Cabinet Office PRISM

Ratio
of Recovery
営業再開の割合

Innovative Research

Master’s and doctoral students
after the graduation ceremony(Sep. 2022)

Creating an infection‐resistanteducational environment

ICHARM has held a follow‐up seminar, includingsite visits, once a year since 2007 in a country ofgraduates from ICHARM educational and training
programs. This annual meeting is an excellent
opportunity for ICHARM to see how graduates areapplying the knowledge and skills they learned
through the programs, as well as to share issues
they face in their practices. Such information isused to improve the programs and research
activities. On February 25, 2022, despite the
COVID‐19 pandemic, we decided to hold aseminar online for the first time, in which two
special speakers and 69 master’s and doctoral
graduates participated.

To continue educational programs amid the spread of the
new coronavirus infection, ICHARM introduced devices,such as electronic blackboards, and systems that allowed
students to attend lectures online in real time even when
they were unable to come to Japan. We took thoroughinfection control measures when in‐person classes
became possible, for example, by setting up partitions andintroducing flexible class management in which classes
were conducted face‐to‐face, remotely, or in combination,
depending on infection status.

Efficient information networking
International Flood Initiative (IFI)

Partners: UNESCO, WMO, UNU, UNDRR, etc.

The International Flood Initiative (IFI) is a framework for international organizations, such as UNESCO, the World MeteorologicalOrganization, the United Nations University, and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, to cooperate in promoting
global flood management. ICHARM has been its secretariat since its foundation.
On October 31, 2016, the Jakarta Declaration was adopted for interdisciplinary cooperation to further promote flood risk
reduction and sustainable development. In response, ICHARM, in collaboration with the IFI partners, has been conducting a
project to establish a “Platform on Water and Disasters” in flood‐prone countries to reduce water‐related disaster risks.

Typhoon Committee

ICHARM Webinar

Award: 2020 Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award, with the Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Infrastructure Development Institute (IDI)
Partners: The
Philippine’s
Departmentof ScienceandTechnology,etc.

The Typhoon Committee is an intergovernmental community formed
in 1968 to promote and coordinate planning and implementation
measures to minimize human and property damage from typhoons in
the Asia‐Pacific region. As chairman of the Hydrology Subcommittee,
ICHARM will lead the discussions together with the MLIT. ICHARM
has contributed greatly to support Committee's flood hazard
mapping project and improving flood forecasting and management
capabilities in the area through the use of satellite products
developed and provided by JAXA.

ICHARM Webinar is held once a year to disseminate
ICHARM's research activities to master's and doctoral
students and young researchers in universities andresearch institutes in Japan and abroadGlobal & National Plans

Greeting from
Executive Director

BudgetOrganization(Million Yen)

UN 2030 Agenda (SDGs)

National Land Development Plan (2015‐25)

UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction (Build Back Better)

5th Priority Plan for Social Infrastructure Development (2021‐25)

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM)
Tsukuba Central Research InstitutePriority goal 1: Realize a disaster prevention/mitigation focused society
Priority goal 5: Achieve DX in infrastructure development and management

Hydrological
5th PWRI Mid‐ and Long‐Term Plans (2022‐27)
R&D program: Technological development to implement “River Basin
Disaster Resilience and Sustainability by All,” the new flood control policy
to fight intensified water‐related disasters.

Priority Areas:
1. Scientific research and innovation
2. Water education in the Fourth Industrial
Revolution including Sustainability
3. Bridging the data‐knowledge gap
4. Integrated Water Resources Management
under conditions of Global Change
5. Water governance based on sciencefor
mitigation, adaptation, and resilience

Purpose: To contribute to preventing and mitigating water‐related disasters bypromoting Japan’s new flood control policy through technological development
aiming to assess future water‐related hazards, implement and evaluate the efforts
driven by the new policy, provide quality flood risk information, and strengthen
the society’s disaster resilience.

President

UNESCOIntergovernmental
Programme IHP‐9 (2022‐29)

Public Works Research Institute (PWRI)ICHARM Program (2022‐2027)

https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/program/index.html

Mission of ICHARM
The mission of ICHARM is to serve as the Global Centre of Excellence for Water Hazard and Risk Management by, inter alia, observing
and analyzing natural and social phenomena, developing methodologies and tools, building capacities, creating knowledge networks,
and disseminating lessons and information in order to assist governments and all stakeholders in managing risks of water‐related
hazards at global, national, and community levels. The hazards to be addressed include floods, droughts, landslides, debris flows,
tsunamis, storm surges, water contamination, and snow and ice disasters.
We envision a Center of Excellence housing a group of leading experts, superior facilities, and an excellent knowledge base, which
conducts (1) innovative research, (2) effective capacity building, and (3) efficient information networking. Based on these threepillars, ICHARM will globally serve as a knowledge hub for best national and local practices and a policy‐making advisor, keeping in
mind respect for the diversity and inclusion of all stakeholders.

Long‐term program (10 years)
Mid‐term program (6 years)(1) Innovative research
1)Data collection, storage, sharing,and statistics
2) Disaster risk assessment
3) Disaster risk monitoring and prediction4) Policy proposal, evaluation, and application
5) Support for better disaster preparedness(2) Effective capacity building
・Train future practitioners and leaders
・Train future facilitators
・Empower local organizations(3) Efficient information networking
・Expand a professional network
・Consolidate a consilience for water disaster
reduction
・Mainstream disaster risk reduction worldwide

International Flood Initiative (IFI)(Philippines, Indonesia, etc.)
・Hazard forecasting using satellite data
・Risk mapping and communication
・Cooperation with administrative andresearch organizations and capacity
building•

Educating overseas students &expanding the alumni network(MA: 157 students from 34 countries,
Ph.D.: 15 students from 5 countries)• Fostering practitioners andfacilitators in overseas countries•••

Collaborating with UNESCO, WMO& UNDRR
Supporting the Typhoon
Committee in establishing inter‐governmental cooperation
Hosting ICFM9

Kumamoto Initiative for Water(2022)
Use of observation andforecasting data

Satellite observation,
forecasting technology, data
integration and analysis

Assessment of water‐related
disaster risks

Hazard Research Group)

Director for Special
ResearchResearch &Training Advisor(Training)

Chief Researcher(Risk Management)
Chief Researcher(Water‐related Hazard)
Chief Researcher(Special Assignment)

Toshio Koike

Achievements & Contributions
2003
2004

2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016

2017

2018
2019
2020
2021

Risk mapping, flood analysis

2022

Enhancement of governanceand systems

2023

Collaboration among domestic
and international organizations,capacity building

Center for Advanced Engineering
Structural Assessment and Research(CAESAR)
Innovative Materials and Resources
Research Center (iMaRRC)

2006

The full version of the ICHARM Program:

Civil Engineering ResearchInstitute for Cold Region (CERI)International
Centre for Water Hazard
Chief Researcher
Deputy Director of

Executiveand Risk Management(ICHARM)ICHARM(Director of Water‐related
Director

March
Apr.1
Mar.6
Sep.14
Oct.4
Jun.2‐ Jul.11
Nov.13Oct.
Sep.27‐ 29
Jan.
Jul.10‐ Aug.7
Mar.5‐ 6
Jul.23
Feb.25Jul.
Oct.1
Mar.14‐ 18
Apr.12‐ 17
Mar.1‐ 2Oct. 31Jan.10Jun.
Jul.20
Dec.11‐ 12
Mar.17‐ 23
Oct.24‐ 26
Jun.24
Sep.30Nov.2‐ 4
Feb.13
Apr.1
Feb. 23
Jun. 11
Jun. 25
Dec. 1Feb. 25
Apr. 23, 24
Feb.19‐ 21

AccessProfessor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo, Council Member of Japan Science Council, Cabinet Office,Fellow of the Japan Federation of Engineering Societies,“International Contribution Award”, Japan Water Prize,"Science Award" by the Japan Society of Hydrology and Water Resources

Proposal was made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum.
Established "Secretariat for Preparatory Activities of UNESCO‐PWRI Centre".
ICHARM was officially established with Prof. Kuniyoshi Takeuchi as the first director.
(a)Held ICHARM inaugural ceremony & commemorative symposium. (a)Started an M. Sc. program on water‐related risk management with JICA and GRIPS. (b)Held a training course, “Comprehensive Tsunami Disaster Prevention,” with UNISDR.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA7276‐REG)”. (c)Started a doctoral program on disaster management with GRIPS.
Hosted the 5th International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM5) in Tokyo.
Started the UNESCO Pakistan Project.
Started a capacity development training on flood risk management with IFAS. (d)Hosted a side event at the UN Special Thematic Session on Water & Disasters. (New York)(c)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was renewed.
Held the first ICHARM Governing Board meeting.
Started a ADB joint project, “Capacity Development Technical Assistance (TA8456‐MYA)”.
Prof. Toshio Koike took over as the second director.
3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. (Sendai) ( e)7th World Water Forum (Daegu) (f)Held the Asian Water Cycle Symposium (AWCS) 2016. (Tokyo)
International Flood Initiative (IFI) "Jakarta declaration".
(e)
9th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposium ‐Implementation Planning Workshop on IFI (Tokyo).
Sent a researcher as a member of the Japan Disaster Relief Expert Team dispatched by the Japanese government to Sri Lanka.
3rd United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York).
3rd Asia‐Pacific Water Summit (Yangon) (g)
8th World Water Forum (Brasilia)
11th GEOSS Asia‐Pacific Symposim (Kyoto)
4th United Nations Special Thematic Session on Water and Disasters. (New York)
Executive Director Toshio Koike received the International Science Cooperation Award 2018 from the Chinese Academy of Science
12th Asia‐Oceania Group on Earth Observations (Canberra)
The agreement on ICHARM between Japan and UNESCO was revised.
Started SATREPS program, collabolative reserch with the Philippines.
ICHARM was given the “Dr. Roman L. Kintanar Award” by Typhoon Committee (Jointly with JAXA・IDI).
Executive Director KOIKE Toshio received FY2020 JSCE International Lifetime Contribution Award.
Science and Technology Panel at the 5th UN Special Thematic Sessions on Water and Disasters
Held WADiRE‐Africa Information session
Follow‐up seminar for ICHARM graduates
4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit in Kumamoto (h)Hosted the 9th International Conference on Flood management (ICFM9) in Tsukuba.

Where in Tsukuba City

(b)

(d)

Background
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) has been promoting water sciences and technologies and,as part of its effort, encouraging the activities of theIntergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) and theestablishment of UNESCO water centers.
In fact, the world has been struggling with water‐related disasters,such as floods, droughts and windstorms. They have been a primarysource of disaster damage worldwide in recent decades and havebeen reported to become increasingly frequent and intense in recent
years. Today, water‐related disasters account for about 90% of all
natural disasters in the world, and about 40% of all water‐related
disasters occur in Asia alone.
In the meantime, Japan has a long history of fighting and overcomingwater‐related disasters and consequently has a wealth of knowledge
and experience, as well as sophisticated technology, in the field.
Leveraging this expertise, Japan has been taking the initiative in
addressing water‐related disasters by participating in the activities of
IHP and the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) anddemonstrating global leadership by hosting the 3rd World Water
Forum in 2003 in Kyoto, Japan.
With its growing presence in the water arena, Japan has further
realized international expectations that it should share its long‐accumulated expertise with other countries in consideration of theirneeds and conditions in order to help reduce disaster damage.

International Centre for
Water Hazard and Risk Management
under the auspices of UNESCO

(f)

(g)

produced by ICHARM based on the EM‐DAT database(h)Launch of ICHARM under the auspices of UNESCO

Where at PWRI

To respond to global expectations to fight against water‐related disasters, a proposal was
made to establish a UNESCO water center in Japan at the 3rd World Water Forum in March
2003. The proposal received widespread support from member countries and UN
organizations at the IHP intergovernmental board meeting in September 2004 and was
adopted at the UNESCO general meeting in October 2005.
Finally, on March 6, 2006, the International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk
Management (ICHARM) was officially established as a UNESCO category II center and partof the Public Works Research Institute of Japan.
The agreement between UNESCO and the Government of Japan was revised and renewed
on February 13, 2020. based on the agreement, the ICHARM Governing Board meeting
was held every year.

4th Asia‐Pacific Water Summit‐ Promote consilience of knowledge‐ Foster facilitators‐ Apply an End‐to‐End approach
MLIT’s international strategy‐ Approach directly to each country‐ Appeal to the international
community and development of
networks

 Support partner countries in developing “systems” and “human resources.” Accelerate “the mainstreaming of water‐related disaster risk reduction” worldwide.
 Promote “the implementation of scientific knowledge in society” and “the development of quality
infrastructure.”

ICHARM was established in March 2006 as part of the Public Works Research Institute, a core civil engineeringresearch center of Japan with a 100‐year history, based on an agreement between UNESCO and theGovernment of Japan, with the aim of mitigating water‐related disaster risks worldwide.
As the climate changes, extreme water disasters such as large‐scale floods and prolonged droughts havebecome frequent in many parts of the world. To cope with such disasters, all stakeholders must joinconcerted efforts to transform societies into resilient, sustainable ones. This transformation requires scienceand technology to propel the conciliation of knowledge through interdisciplinary collaboration. It also
requires cultivating human resources who can act as catalysts to link cutting‐edge technologies to individual
actions.
ICHARM has been developing advanced scientific knowledge in meteorology, hydrology, sediment hydraulics,
river engineering, geography, remote sensing, and risk management, while continuing efforts to integrateknowledge in collaboration with various academic fields, such as agriculture, economics, and sociology. At thesame time, we have been striving to foster human resources by strengthening cooperation with various
countries, regions, and international organizations.
ICHARM will deepen and broaden its activities to enhance science, technology, and capacity building, thereby
reducing water‐related disaster risks and contributing further to the implementation and improvement ofwell‐being in society.

International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management under the auspices of UNESCO (ICHARM)
Public Works Research Institute (PWRI), National Research and Development Agency, Japan
1‐6 Minamihara, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture, 305‐8516, Japan
TEL +81‐29‐879‐6809 FAX +81‐29‐879‐6709 Email：icharm@pwri.go.jp URL: https://www.pwri.go.jp/icharm/index.html

Mt. Tsukuba and PWRI
Revised on 2023.1

Signing ceremony for the official launch of ICHARM:
the representative of the Japanese government (left), UNESCO
Secretary‐General (center) and PWRI Chief Executive.
(March 3, 2006)

ICHARM will contribute to the mitigation of water disaster damage around the world bycombining research activities, capacity building activities, and information network activities
with keywords such as "climate change," "sustainability," and "food and energy."