About HPC

The Hiroshima Peacebuilders Center (HPC) is a general incorporated association engaged in human resource development, research, and other activities in the field of peacebuilding. Its origins trace back to a voluntary organization named “Peacebuilders,” established by its current Representative Director, Professor Hideaki Shinoda, during his tenure at Hiroshima University. Professor Shinoda’s increasing collaboration with the JICA Chugoku Center in training programs led to the founding of Peacebuilders as an initial step.

Later, Peacebuilders transitioned into an NPO and expanded its scope beyond training programs to include peacebuilding projects, such as “psychosocial support” in Palestine and an “early warning network” in Sierra Leone. In 2007, when Hiroshima University became the primary contractor for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ commissioned project, the Peacebuilding Human Resource Development Program, Peacebuilders became the operational body under the name Hiroshima Peacebuilders Center (HPC).

By 2011, HPC gained the status of a general incorporated association. For 17 years, until March 2024, HPC consistently implemented projects commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Building on this track record, HPC now carries out a diverse range of activities to further the cause of peacebuilding.

About the Logo

HPC’s logo features a phoenix, symbolizing the spirit of HPC in training peacebuilding professionals who support post-conflict countries, all in Hiroshima—a city that achieved a miraculous post-war recovery.