Who We are
(as of August 2024)

Chair of HELP

Dr. Han Seung-soo
Former Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea (2008-09)

Founding Chair, High-Level Experts and Leaders Panel on Water and Disasters (2007-)
President of the 56th Session of the UN General Assembly (2001-02)
Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Climate Change (2007-08) and for Disaster Risk Reduction and Water (2013-18)
Member, the UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation (UNSGAB) (2004-15)
Senior Advisor, High-Level Panel on Water (HLPW) co-sponsored by UN and World Bank (2016-19)
Chair, ADB Water Advisory Group (2014-)
Founding Chair, Global Green Growth Institute (2010-12)
Korea’s Minister of Trade and Industry (1988-90), Ambassador to the US (1993-94), Chief Secretary to the President (1994-95) Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance (1996-97), and Minister of Foreign Affairs (2001-02).
Member of the Korean National Assembly (1988-2004)
Professor of Economics at Seoul National University (1970-88)
Received the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the United Nations  (2001)
Received the honorary knighthood (KBE) from Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom (2004)

 

Vice Chairs

H.E. Dr. Basuki Hadimuljono
Minister of Public Works and Housing, Republic of Indonesia

H.E. Mr. Barry Madlener
Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, Kingdom of the Netherlands

 

Members

H.E. Prof. Dr. Hani Sewilam
President of the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) / Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, the Arab Republic of Egypt

Mr. Janez Lenarčič
Commissioner, Crisis Management, European Union

Mr. Masayoshi Hirose
Vice-Minister for Engineering Affairs, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Japan

Lieutenant General Scott A. Spellmon
Chief of Engineers and Commanding General of The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Prof. Celeste Saulo 
Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization

Ms. Audrey Azoulay
Director General, UNESCO

Dr. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana
Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary, ESCAP

Mr. Kamal Kishore
Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, UNDRR

Dr. Akihiko Tanaka
President, JICA, Japan

Mr. Saroj Kumar Jha
Global Director, World Bank Water Global Practice, The World Bank

Ms. Fatima Yasmin
Vice-President for Sectors and Themes, Asian Development Bank

Ms. Elsa Pilichowski
Director for Public Governance, OECD

Mr. Pablo Bereciartua
Minister of Infrastructure, Buenos Aires City Government, Argentina

Mr. Imam Santoso
Chairman, Network of Asian River Basin Organizations

Mr. Daniel Bertossa
General Secretary, Public Services International

Mr. Loic Fauchon
President, World Water Council

Dr. Subin Pinkayan
Chairman, Board of Trustees, Asian Institute of Technology

Mr. Yun Seog Dae
President and CEO of K-water

H.E. Mr. Jan Kavan
Former Deputy Prime Minister, Czech Republic / President of the 57th Session of the United Nations General Assembly

 

Special Advisor

H.E. Dr. Bambang Susantono
Chairman of the Nusantara National Capital Authority, Republic of Indonesia

 

Advisors

Mr. Harm Duel
Research manager, Water Resources Management, Deltares

Dr. Gretchen Kalonji
Professor, International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS)

Mr. Hideaki Oda
Former Co-chair of WG on Water and Disaster, UNSGAB

Dr. Jerome Delli Priscoli
Chair, GWP Technical Committee

Mr. Kenji Kanao
President, Japan Water Agency

Dr. Khin Ni Ni Thein
Founder and Initiator of Myanmar Water Academy/Think Tank

Mr. Koos Wieriks
Councilor to Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Kingdom of the Netherlands

Mr. Michael Szoenyi
Climate Alliance Director, Adapting to Climate Change, Z Zurich Foundation

Dr. Tetsushi Sonobe
Dean, Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI)

Mr. Niels Vlaanderen
Coordinator International Water Affairs, Marine and International Water Policy, Directorate-General for Water & Soil, Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Kingdom of the Netherlands

Mr. Rae-kwon Chung
Former Principal Advisor on Climate Change to the Secretary-General of the UN, Climate Change Ambassador of the Republic of Korea

Prof. Toshio Koike
Director, International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM)

Dr. Ursula Schaefer-Preuss
Former Chair, GWP

Prof. Gordon McBean
past President, International Council for Science; Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction, Canada

Dr. Thomas Panella
Chair, The Action Platform for Source-to-Sea Management (S2S Platform)

Mr. Tony Slatyer
Special Adviser on Water, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia

Dr. Yong Deok Cho
General Director of K-water and Secretary General of Asia Water Council (AWC)

Ms. Catarina de Albuquerque
Chief Executive Officer of Sanitation and Water for All (SWA)

Dr. Stefan Uhlenbrook
Director of Hydrology, Water and Cryosphere at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) 

 

Coordinators

Prof. Kenzo Hiroki
Professor, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS)

Dr. Ilpyo Hong
Research Fellow, Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, the Republic of Korea

 

Secretariat

Hiroki Laboratory, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Japan

7-22-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-8677

helpsecretariat@wateranddisaster.org