RIWE RIWE Regional Institute of Water Education

RIWE Organizational Chart

RIWE Board of Trustees has the highest policy and decision making authority. The board members are :

  • Minister of Energy of the Islamic Republic of Iran: Chairman of the Board of Trusties, Professor Reza Ardakanian, Ph.D.
  • President of the University of Tehran: First Vice-Chairman, Professor Mahmud Nili Ahmadabadi, Ph.D.
  • RIWE Dean: Reporter of the Borad, Dr. Mohammad Ali Banihashemi, Ph.D.
  • Director of UNESCO Cluster Office in Tehran: Second Vice-Chairman, Esther Kuisch Laroche
  • Director of the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO: Professor Nasiri Gheydari, Ph.D.
  • 3 to 5 individuals from Iran or other countries appointed upon approval of the Minister of Energy and the President of the University of Tehran

Main responsibilities of RIWE Board of Trustees are described in RIWE Statute as follows:

  1. Defining general policies and mid-term and long-term goals and missions of RIWE;
  2. Approval of the Board of Trustees bylaws and RIWE Statute;
  3. Approval of the organizational chart and Annual Budgets;
  4. Appointing RIWE Dean;
  5. Approval of the guidelines and bylaws proposed by the Dean;
  6. To monitor annual budget allocation to RIWE activities, incomes and approval of annual fiscal report;
  7. Annual evaluation of the RIWE performance in general and educational and research performance in specific.

The RIWE trustees together with the RIWE Dean are responsible for governing and stewarding the institute. While the Board of Trustees has the ultimate authority about institute’s policies and programs, the governance of the institute is shared with the faculty, as individuals who serve in leadership roles with authority over majority of policy and administrative work of the institute.

RIWE is led by Dean, the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs and Vice Dean for Administrative Affairs.

  • Dean: Mohammad Ali Banihashemi, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Hydraulic Engineering.
  • Vice Dean for Administrative Affairs: Mehdi Yasi, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Hydraulic Engineering.
  • Vice Dean for Academic Affairs: Banafsheh Zahraie, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Water Resources Management.

Dr. Mohammad Ali Banihashemi was appointed as the Dean of RIWE in October 2016 jointly by the President of the University of Tehran and the Minister of Energy. Dr. Mehdi Yasi and Dr. Banafsheh Zahraie were appointed by the Dean of Institute in May 2017 for a period of two years. 

The University – Industry Collaboration Commission (UICC) not only guides University-Industry collaboration in RIWE activities but also plays the role of standing committee of the Board of Trustees. The following UICC members have been appointed in November 2016 jointly by the Minister of Energy of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the President of the University of Tehran:

  • Dr. Peyman Badiee, Ph.D.,
    Associate Professor, School of Civil Engineering, University of Tehran, Iran
  • Dr. Alireza Eftekhari, Ph.D.,
    Head, Water Research Institute, Iran
  • Dr. Hedayat Fahmi, Ph.D.,
    Deputy, Water and Waste Water Macro Planning Bureau of Ministry of Energy, Iran
  • Professor Javad Farhoudi, Ph.D.,
    Professor, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, University of Tehran, Iran
  • Professor Ali Meghdari, Ph.D.,
    Professor, School of Mechanical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Iran
  • Professor Sadollah Nasiri Gheydari, Ph.D.,
    Secretary-General, Iranian National Commission for UNESCO, Iran
  • Dr. Nastaran Rahimi, Ph.D.,
    Department of Environment, Energy Planning Bureau, Ministry of Energy, Iran
  • Dr. Banafsheh Zahraie, Ph.D.,
    Associate Professor, School of Civil Engineering, University of Tehran, Iran

The main responsibilities of UICC has been stated in the Statute as follows:

  • Planning for promotion of university-industry cooperation;
  • Educational and research planning for the approved programs, workshops and short courses and assessing qualifications of lecturers;
  • Verifying any modification of Statute recommended by the Dean for the final approval by the Board of Trustees;
  • Assessing mid- and short-term plans of the institute before presentation to the Board of Trustees;
  • Examining and approval of the annual budget of the institute before presentation to the Board of Trustees;
  • Assessing annual reports of the institute.