Greetings from the Chairholder

Welcome to the Kobe University UNESCO Chair on Education for Gender, Disaster Resilience, and Well-being.

When we began this work in 2018, we were guided by a simple belief: that education can help people understand the risks they face, reduce the vulnerabilities that deepen them, and act together towards safer and fairer futures. That belief has carried us through three terms. We started by looking at gender and vulnerability in disaster risk reduction, then broadened our attention to the well-being of whole communities, and now, in our third term, we place education at the centre of everything we do.

The reason for this focus is difficult to ignore. Disasters do not fall evenly. They press hardest on those who are already marginalised, and in doing so they reveal inequalities that quietly shape daily life. Our response is to promote approaches to disaster risk reduction that are gender-responsive and inclusive, and to connect global frameworks such as the SDGs and the Sendai Framework with the knowledge and experience that live within communities themselves.

None of this happens alone. I am grateful to our partner universities, international organisations, and government agencies in Japan and beyond, and to the students, colleagues, and communities whose commitment gives this Chair its meaning.

I warmly invite you to explore our research, take part in our seminars and conversations, and join us in building more inclusive and resilient communities through education.