In the case of mega disasters, it is vital for the whole society to deal with the situation comprehensively while various parties liaise, complement and cooperate with each other; however, we profoundly lack human resources that can play a core role to lead such tasks. Amid the rising possibility of an occurrence of a mega disaster, our first priority is to produce human resources that have received education specialized in disaster resilience and can play an active role in a wide range of sectors such as local authorities, companies, schools, NPOs and communities.

Reflecting such social needs and with the experience of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in Hyogo Prefecture, knowledge gained from over 20 years of reconstruction and lessons learned from natural disasters such as the Great East Japan Earthquake and heavy rainfall disasters all over the country, the master’s program of the Graduate School of Disaster Resilience and Governance has opened at the University of Hyogo in April 2017 for the purpose of fostering specialized human resources that can contribute to disaster resilience. Moreover, the doctoral program was also founded in April 2019 to foster human resources that contribute to research and policy planning by obtaining advanced specialized knowledge and skills.

The more expertly knowledgeable and experienced in disaster resilience you become, the more effective action against disasters you will be able to take. Expectations are high for graduates of this graduate school to play an active role in various fields such as conducting research regarding disaster resilience, planning and implementing measures, practicing risk management, providing disaster reduction education in local areas and schools, and establishing liaison among various parties. I truly look forward to seeing you having the ambition to achieve disaster resilience with even higher expertise at Kobe Bosai (disaster reduction) Campus.

MUROSAKI Yoshiteru
Dean of the Graduate School