Press Releases
The High School Students Summit on “World Tsunami Awareness Day” 2026 in Iwate
From October 20 to 22, the High School Students Summit on "World Tsunami Awareness Day" 2026 in Iwate was held in Iwate Prefecture. It was co-hosted by Iwate Prefecture, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Hiroshima Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, and others. A total of 99 high school students from 14 countries, including Japan, participated in the Summit (63 domestic and 36 overseas high school students).
- Through the Summit, the high school students learned about the threat of tsunamis and Japan's efforts in disaster risk reduction. They also deepened their understanding of the knowledge, technologies and lessons of disaster risk reduction, a challenge shared by the world. In addition, they engaged in discussions in workshops on three themes: "Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction: Leaving No One Behind," "Building Resilience Before Disaster Strikes," and "Passing on Lessons and Communicating for the Future." On the final day, the discussions from the workshops were summarized, and the Summit Declaration was announced as the overall outcome of the Summit.
- On October 21, at the opening ceremony and the reception, Ms. IKUINA Akiko, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, delivered remarks on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Referring to the lessons learned from disasters, including the Great East Japan Earthquake, she emphasized the importance of addressing disaster risk reduction through both "hard" and "soft" measures, and of passing on memories and lessons to future generations. She further expressed her hope that the Summit would be an opportunity to deepen the "kizuna" (bonds) among the participating high school students.
- The high school students are expected to bring the knowledge and experiences gained through the Summit back to their own countries, and to play leading roles in the field of disaster risk reduction in their respective countries in the future.
(Reference1) “World Tsunami Awareness Day”
In December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted by consensus a resolution, co-sponsored by 142 countries, including Japan, to designate November 5 as “World Tsunami Awareness Day” in order to raise awareness of and promote countermeasures against tsunami risks.
(Reference2) Countries of the participating high school students
Japan, Brunei, Cambodia, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam (a total of 14 countries)