Biographical note

Kanako Iuchi joined International Research Institute of Disaster Science (IRIDeS), Tohoku University, in 2013 as an associate professor. Her areas of expertise include disaster management planning, urban and regional planning, and community development in international settings. Prior to joining IRIDeS, she worked as an Urban Specialist in the World Bank and an international development planner and researcher with bi- and multi-lateral organizations; national, regional, and local governments; and communities in more than ten countries across East and South Asia, South America, and Eastern Europe. She holds a BS from Tsukuba University, an MRP from Cornell University, and a PhD from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, in urban and regional planning. Her primary research interest is on understanding a better planning tools and procedures for resettlement after disasters, and is currently exploring the theme in different settings including Japan, Indonesia, Philippines and the US. 
Norio Maki is professor at Kyoto University in Japan and holds various degrees in Engineering including a PhD. He is currently working at the Disaster Prevention Research Institute of this institution. Before becoming a full time Professor in 2014 he worked at various key positions including Team Leader at the Earthquake Disaster Mitigation Research Center of the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention and Senior Researcher at the Earthquake Disaster Mitigation Research Center, RIKEN both in Japan. Prof. Maki has been a Member of the Committee of National Land Use Planning, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transportation, and Tourism in Japan, and nowadays he is an active Member of the Tsunami Research Committee (MEXT, Japan) and an Emergency Management Advisor in Kyoto Prefecture. He has published a number of scientific papers and managed research projects on disaster prevention topics. Prof. Maki’s main interests are Long Term Recovery From Disaster, Multi-hazard Strategic Disaster Reduction Planning, and Information Sharing for Disaster Response.

Vicente Santiago worked in the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for over 23 years. Initially as Deputy Coordinator of the Environmental Training Network for Latin America and the Caribbean (Mexico), then as Deputy Coordinator of the Regional Programme on Integrated Planning and Institutional Development for the Wider Caribbean Region (Jamaica), and finally as Water Officer at the International Environmental Technology Centre located in Japan.  He has carried out projects and activities in various countries in the Caribbean region, Middle East, Africa, Asia and North and South America, as well as in Europe collaborating with governments, institutions and NGOs.  His areas of expertise include integrated coastal zone management, integrated river and lakes management,water quality and wetlands, and lately natural hazards in coastal areas mainly earthquakes and tsunamis. He has published a number of technical reports, environmental training materials, scientific and technical papers as well as edited a number of books. He received his Bachelor degree as a Biologist at the National University of Mexico (UNAM), Master in Science degree in Marine Biology at the University College North Wales; Bangor (Wales, UK), and Ph.D. in Environmental Chemial Engineering (Applied Sciences) at Exeter University (England, UK) initiating his professional career as lecturer at the Metropolitan University of Mexico (UAM).  At present he is an Invited Researcher at the International Lake Environment Committee Foundation (ILEC) in Japan and also works as a freelance consultant.

Shinji Sato graduated from the Graduate School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo in 1983. He worked as a research associate at Civil Engineering Department and received Dr. Eng. degree in 1987. He then moved to Yokohama National University and worked as an associate professor until 1994. He moved to Public Works Research Institute, Ministry of Construction and worked for the Coast Division until 1999. He then moved to the University of Tokyo and was appointed to a professor in 2000. His major is coastal engineering, especially sediment movement and beach evolution. His research topics include nearshore processes, large-scale long-term coastal evolution, infragravity motion, coastal disaster mitigation against storm surge and tsunami, and sustainability of coastal environment. He has done pioneering works on oscillatory boundary layer flow over bedforms, numerical model development of nonlinear dispersive waves, nearshore currents due to waves and winds, and sediment movement in the watershed scale. He was awarded with Excellent Paper Award of Japan Society of Civil Engineers in 1998, Coastal Engineering Journal Award in 2005 and JSCE Excellent Book Publication Award in 2014. He currently serves as a special advisor of ocean policy to the cabinet.