Introduction: Aim and Outline of the Book Series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology”

Abstract

The Kyoto 2020 Commitment for Global Promotion of Understanding and Reducing Landslide Disaster Risk (Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020: KLC2020) was launched on 5 November 2020 by the adoption of 2020 Kyoto Declaration in the end of the launching session of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020. The KLC2020 was signed by 90 worldwide partners. On 3 November 2021, during the 5th World Landslide Forum (WLF5) held in a hybrid mode (onsite, online-virtual, and pre-recorded modes) in Kyoto, Japan, the ICL and the KLC2020 partners launched the new open-access book series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” to promote the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 for global promotion of understanding and reducing landslide disaster risk. This article introduces the aim and outline of the new book series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology.”

1 Aim

The Kyoto 2020 Commitment for Global Promotion of Understanding and Reducing Landslide Disaster Risk (Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020: KLC2020): A Commitment to the ISDR-ICL Sendai Partnerships 2015–2025, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, the 2030 United Nations Agenda Sustainable Development Goals, the New Urban Agenda and the Paris Climate Agreement was launched on 5 November 2020 by the adoption of 2020 Kyoto Declaration in the end of the launching session of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020.

Figure 1 shows the logos of the International Consortium on Landslides (ICL) and the KLC2020. KLC2020 was proposed by the ICL based on the 2006 Tokyo Action Plan. The Memorandum of Understanding to promote the Action Plan was exchanged between the ICL and each of the ICL supporting organizations (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), United Nations University (UNU), International Science Council (ISC), World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO)) in 2006. IPL and KLC2020 will continue to 2030 and beyond, symbolized by an arrow.

Fig. 1

Logos of the ICL and the Kyoto landslide commitment 2020

Following the launching of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 and the establishment of the Secretariat of the KLC2020 on 5 November 2020, the Secretariat examined and prepared a mechanism for the further development of the KLC2020 to 2030 and beyond. It was then proposed to launch an open-access book series as a platform for KLC2020 partners, practitioners, and stakeholders. The open-access book series shall contribute to greater applications of the advanced scientific knowledge, with a multi-hazard approach, and in raising awareness at all levels worldwide.

On 3 November 2021, during the 5th World Landslide Forum (WLF5) held in a hybrid mode (onsite, online-virtual, and pre-recorded modes) in Kyoto, Japan, the ICL and the KLC2020 partners have launched the new open-access book series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” for the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 for global promotion of understanding and reducing landslide disaster risk. The ICL has published 3–7 volumes of books for triennial WLF (WLF2 in 2011. WLF3 in 2014, WLF4 in 2017, and WLF5 in 2021) to report the progress of research and technology for the past three years. Biannual publication of the new open access book series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” shall replace the role of triennial WLF book publication. Thus, ICL has decided not to publish books for WLF6 in 2023 and later.

The ICL was founded in January 2002 and started issuing a new full color scientific journal “Landslides” in 2003, and published the founding issue in April 2004. Landslides has grown up from a quarterly journal to a monthly journal with 3977 published pages in 2021 and the 2020 Impact Factor of 6.578. ICL and its valuable network of scientists has readily available sufficient scientific material for understanding landslide disaster risk as mentioned in the concluding remarks by Sálvano Briceño in the high-level panel discussion of the WLF5.

At the opportunity of the 20th anniversary of ICL in 2022, the ICL and KLC2020 partners, with the financial and technical support from the KLC2020 official promoters, has published the founding issue of the open-access book series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” for global promotion of reducing landslide disaster risk.

Table 1 presents different aim and scope between the ICL New Book Series and the ICL Journal.

Table 1 Differences in the aim and scope between ICL book series and ICL journal

The target readers of journal papers are scientists. Articles consist of original/new findings for landslide research. Readers are those who have necessary background knowledge, have access to the referred journals and can read the cited references.

The target readers of the open access book series are practitioners and other stakeholders who apply in practice the most advanced knowledge of science and technology for landslide disaster risk reduction. Articles must be written in a simplified way that is easily understandable by these practitioners and stakeholders.

2 Outline

The ICL and the Global Promotion Committee of the International Programme on Landslides including the ICL supporting organizations (UNESCO, WMO, FAO, UNDRR, UNU, ISC, WFEO, International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS), and International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) have organized World Landslide Forums every three years in 2008, 2011, 2014, 2017 and planned WLF5 in Nov. 2020. Due to COVID-19, the WLF5 in 2020 was postponed to 2–6 Nov. 2021. However, due to Covid-19 restrictions, foreign participants were not allowed to attend WLF5 in Kyoto, Japan in-person. The WLF5 was organized in a hybrid system, namely, by including onsite, online, and the pre-recorded presentations.

The total number of participants of WLF5 was 525, in which 215 from Japan, 47 from Italy, 45 from China, 21 from USA, more than 10 are from Czech Republic, UK, India, Indonesia and Chinese Taipei, 5 from United Nations organizations, and 3 from international organizations (Table 2).

Table 2 Participants (onsite, online and pre-recorded) of WLF5 held on 2–6 November 2021 in Kyoto, Japan

On the morning of 3 November 2021, an opening greeting session from ICL and ICL supporting organizations and a high-level panel discussion session “Review of KLC2020 and the way forward” were organized at Room A of the National Kyoto International Conference Center in Kyoto, Japan. At the end of the two plenary sessions, the Launching Declaration of the ICL Open Access Book Series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” for the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 was adopted by all panelists and participants attending in-person and virtually.

The Opening Greeting session was chaired by Kyoji Sassa (WLF5 Forum Chair) and Qunli Han (Chair of Global Promotion Committee of IPL/Executive Director of Integrated Research on Disaster Risk). It consisted of the following:

Opening address from the primary organizer:

• Nicola Casagli (President of the International Consortium on Landslides).

Greetings from United Nations organizations:

• David Malone (Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations/Rector of the United Nations University)

• Mami Mizutori (United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction)

• Petteri Taalas (Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization: WMO)

• Maria Helena Semedo (Deputy Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organizations: FAO)

• Shamila Nair-Bedouelle (Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization: UNESCO).

Greetings from scientific organizations:

• José M.P. Vieira (President of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations: WFEO)

• Kathryn Whaler (President of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics: IUGG)

• John Ludden (President of the International Union of Geological Sciences: IUGS).

Welcome messages from host organizations:

• Hiroaki Tsunakawa, Director for Sabo Planning Coordination, Ministry of Land Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Japan

• Akira Murakami, Executive Vice-President of Kyoto University.

Prof. Akira Murakami, Executive Vice-President of Kyoto University came to the Kyoto International Conference Center and presented welcome message on site. He joined this group photo (front and center) in Fig. 2.

Fig. 2

Group photo of the WLF5 onsite participants in room A of the Kyoto international conference center and on the online zoom platform on 3 November 2021

High-level Panel Discussion “Review of KLC2020 and the way forward”

Opening Greetings from Forum Chairs:

• Peter Bobrowsky (Geological Survey of Canada, Canada)

• Kaoru Takara (Kyoto University, Japan)

  • Chairs: Matjaž Mikoš (Co-Chair, Global Promotion Committee of IPL/Chair of WLF4, Ljubljana, 2017).

    • Kazuo Konagai (Chair of Science Committee of the KLC2020 Secretariat, Kyoto, Japan)

  • Keynote speech:

    • Kyoji Sassa (Secretary General of KLC2020 Secretariat): Review of KLC2020 and a new Open Access Book Series for KLC2020

  • Sassa presented a short history of KLC2020 beginning from the 2005 Letter of Intent which was proposed by the ICL and agreed in a thematic session in the Second World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, Japan in January 2005.

    • The Letter of Intent was signed by UNESCO, WMO, FAO, UNISDR (UNDRR), UNU, ICSU (ISC) and WFEO within 2005.

    • The ISDR-ICL Sendai Landslide Partnerships 2015–2025 was established in March 2015.

    • The KLC2020 was approved and signed by ninety signatory organizations and launched in November 2020.

  • Finally, he proposed a new open access book series titled, “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” as a platform in order to promote the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020.

  • Speeches were delivered by nine panelists from KLC2020 signatory organizations.

ICL supporting organizations:

• Paola Albrito (Chief of Branch, Intergovernmental processes, Interagency cooperation and Partnerships, UNDRR)

• Soichiro Yasukawa (Programme Specialist on Disaster Risk Reduction, UNESCO)

• José M.P. Vieira (President of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations: WFEO)

• Hiroshi Kitazato (Treasure of IUGS, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, Japan)

• John LaBrecque (Chair of IUGG GeoRisk Commission, Center for Space Research, University of Texas, Austin, USA).

ICL full members:

• Binod Tiwari (ICL Vice President for America, California State University, Fullerton, USA)

• Paola Reichenbach (Director of Research, IRPI, Italian National Research Council, Italy)

• Maneesha Ramesh (Dean, School for Sustainable Development and International Programs, Amrita University, India).

ICL supporter:

• Hiroaki Tauchi (General Manager, International Geohazard Management Department, Nippon Koei, Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan)

Discussion (panelists and floor)

Concluding remarks

• Sálvano Briceño (First Chairperson of the Global Promotion Committee of IPL (2007–2014), Former Director of UNISDR (2001–2011).

Dr. Sálvano Briceño is the Former Director of UNISDR (2001–2011). During this period, he continued to support the activities of ICL. He contributed to the establishment of the 2006 Tokyo Action Plan which created the International Programme on Landslides (IPL) and the Global Promotion Committee of the International Programme on Landslides. He worked as the first chairperson of the Global Promotion Committee of the International Programme on Landslides (2007–2014). Currently, he is a senior advisor of the ICL.

In the concluding remarks, he firstly stressed the significance of the intergovernmental network on landslide risk reduction, and the importance of cooperating with relevant intergovernmental processes, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In the main policy areas of mitigation and adaptation of the IPCC, preventing, mitigating and preparing for landslide disasters should become a main objective of climate change policies and research, given their heavy impact on development, and their expected increase due to global warming, and to the expansion of vulnerability due to urban growth and urban density.

Secondly, he called for “a greater application of scientific knowledge, with a multi-hazard approach, in raising awareness at all levels worldwide,” stating that understanding the origin and causes as well as the impacts of landslides, floods, cyclones, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, droughts and land degradation, needs to become the current knowledge of citizens and communities around the world. The ICL and its valuable network of specialists has sufficient scientific material readily available to contribute to such a task, but the task requires a substantive increase in academic participation in the media, in various forms, interviews, presentations, debates, briefs for guidance to journalists, press releases, etc.

The high-level panel discussion concluded with the Adoption of the Launching Declaration of the ICL Open Access Book Series for KLC2020 by all panelists and participants attending in-person and virtually, as shown below.

Launching Declaration of the ICL Open Access Book Series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” for the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020

The Kyoto 2020 Commitment for Global Promotion of Understanding and Reducing Landslide Disaster Risk (Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020)—A Commitment to the Sendai Landslide Partnerships 2015–2025, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, the 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goals, the New Urban Agenda and the Paris Climate Agreement was launched on 5 November 2020 together with 90 signatories. The KLC2020 established a Secretariat of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment within the ICL Secretariat in Kyoto, Japan at the same time.

In order to promote “Kyoto 2020 Commitment until 2030 and beyond, a new stable and global platform is essential for the information dissemination and collaboration within KLC2020 partners and the Society. Therefore, the establishment of an Open Access book series of the International Consortium on Landslides (ICL) “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” was planned and proposed by the KLC2020 Secretariat. This book series can be downloaded free of charge by all, both in developing and developed countries suffering from landslide disasters and also the policy makers involved in landslide disaster risk reduction.

Until today, twenty international/national and public/private organizations in the world have accepted the role of the KLC2020 official promoters who promote the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 and provide financial support for the implementation of the KLC2020 activities. Many experts have accepted the role of voluntary editors and advisory members. Both financial and personal resources have been secured for this new publication series.

On 3 November 2021 during the Fifth World Landslide Forum in Kyoto, Japan, at the high-level panel discussion “Review of KLC2020 and the way forward”, all panelists and participants agreed on, and declared the launching of the ICL Open Access Book Series “Progress in Landslide Research and Technology” for the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020.

Date: 3 November 2021.

Place: Kyoto, Japan.

3 Call for KLC2020 Official Promoters

The Secretariat of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 has expended efforts to create a new Open Access Book Series “the Progress of Landslide Research and Technology” as the key tool for the implementation of the KLC2020. The detailed information is uploaded in the ICL webpage <https://icl.iplhq.org/book-series-of-klc2020/>.

The KLC2020 Secretariat requests organizations to cooperate for promoting the KLC2020 activities including this new book series “Progress of Landslide Research and Technology” as the KLC2020 official promoters. KLC2020 official promoters are public and private organizations who promote the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 and provide financial support for the implementation of the KLC2020 activities including publication of the Open Access Book Series. So far, the following twenty organizations have accepted the role of KLC2020 Official Promoters.

KLC2020 Official Promoters

Host organization

International Consortium on Landslides (ICL)/Nicola Casagli

Public sectors: KLC2020 Official Promoters-public

International Unions/Associations, Governmental organizations, Universities and Research institutes

• The International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS)/John Ludden

• The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG)/Kathy Whaler

• The International Association for the Engineering Geology and the Environment/Rafig Azzam

• International Geosynthetics Society (IGS)/John Kraus

• Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Canada/Daniel Lebel

• Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia/Matjaž Mikoš

• China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China/Huiming Tang

• Department of Civil Engineering, National Taiwan University, Chinese Taipei/Shang-Hsien Hsien

• Institute of Rock Structure and Mechanics, the Czech Academy of Sciences/Josef Stemberk

• Institute of Cold Regions Science and Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, China/Wei Shan.

Private sectors: KLC2020 Official Promoters-private

Companies and corporation

• Marui & Co. Ltd, Japan

• Nippon Koei Co., Ltd, Japan

• Ellegi srl, Italy

• IDS GeoRadar s.r.l., Italy

• Chuo Kaihatsu Corporation, Japan

• Godai Corporation, Japan

• Kiso-Jiban Consultants Co., Ltd, Japan

• Kokusai Kogyo Co., Ltd., Japan

• OSASI Technos, Inc., Japan.

Advisory members for KLC2020

Abou Amani, Director, Division of Water Sciences, Secretary, Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP), UNESCO

Soichiro Yasukawa, Programme Specialist, Coordinator for Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience, UNESCO

Daniel Lebel, Director General, Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Canada.

John Ludden, President of the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS).

John LaBrecque, Chair of IUGG GeoRisk Commission, Center for Space Research, U. Texas Austin, USA.

Rafig Azzam, President of the International Association for the Engineering Geology and the Environment (IAEG).

Paolo Canuti, Past President of the International Consortium on Landslides (ICL), Italy.

Sȧlvano Briceño, First Chair of the Global Promotion Committee of the International Programme on Landslides.

Badaoui Rouhban, Chair of the KLC2020 Launching Session and Moderator of ISDR-ICL Sendai Landslide Partnerships 2015–2025 Session of 3rd WCDRR in 2015.

4 Call for Articles

The target users of book series are practitioners and other stakeholders who apply the most advanced knowledge of science and technology for landslide disaster risk reduction. Articles must be written in a simplified way easily understandable by practitioners and other stakeholders, including requiring minimum necessary extraneous information. Application/explanation of new modelling, new technology or new concept already published in journals are effective for landslide disaster risk reduction. Teaching tools including video and illustration are useful for landslide disaster risk reduction. Reports of the IPL Projects, WCoE activities, and activities of Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020 that contribute to the landslide disaster risk reduction are also appropriate.

Categories of ICL Book Series “ P-LRT ”

• 1. Original articles (minimum 8 pages): Original articles reporting progress of landslide research and technology.

• 2. Review articles (minimum 8 pages): Review of landslide research and technology in a thematic area of landslides. A review article integrating a series of research and technology of the author or its group.

• 3. ICL landslide lessons (minimum 20 pages): Lessons by global and emerging experts with distinguished achievements in one of specific aspects in understanding and reducing landslide disaster risk.

• 4. IPL/WCoE/Kyoto Commitment activities (minimum 8 pages): Progress or achievements of the projects of the International Programme on Landslides (IPL) and the World Centres of Excellence on Landslide Risk Reduction (WCoEs), and Kyoto Landslide Commitment.

• 5. Teaching tools with online extras (minimum 8 pages): User-friendly teaching tools with extras (i.e., photos, illustration, videos, guidelines & manuals) online to fill the gap between the available level of science and technologies and the practical use in the society.

• 6. Technical note & Case studies (minimum 4 pages): Technical note and case studies on landslides and landslide disaster risk reduction practice.

• 7. World Landslide Reports: Landslide reports from landslide-prone developing countries and urbanizing areas of the developed countries from around the world. No processing charge, but limited to 40 pages per issue.

• 8. Introduction of KLC2020 Official Promoters (1–3 pages): KLC2020 Official Promoters are eligible for this category. The introduction of the official promoters is published in all issues (normally 2) throughout the year.

This book series are planned to be published two times per year, in April–May and October–November. Submission-review- publication will take 6 months. The length of an issue will be 400–500 pages. To make a good publication plan together with authors participating to promote the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020, the Editorial office requests potential authors to inform their plans for article submission to each issue to the KLC2020 Secretariat <KLC2020@iclhq.org>.

Video link

https://us06web.zoom.us/rec/play/5djycamTN2UUbdp9d8-wAT-taQFN-IkTUrujGp0GzRnXuQsRjPqGooNiGWoKvFCBZoq5one6ZPE899Oc.xBIr3J4Vq9MFXSDX?autoplay=true&startTime=1661758164000

Contact for publication in P-LRT

Kyoji Sassa

Editor-in-Chief of Progress in Landslide Research and Technology

Secretariat of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020

International Consortium on Landslides

138-1 Tanaka-Asukai-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8226, Japan

Email: KLC2020 Secretariat <KLC2020@iclhq.org>

Kyoji Sassa	Matjaž Mikoš
Secretary-General of the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020	Chair of the Global Promotion Committee of the IPL and the Kyoto Landslide Commitment 2020