In memoriam: Prof. Erich Plate (1929-2019)

Professor Erich Plate, the founding father of the International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM) series, passed away on July 22, 2019. He was a visionary scientist, a tireless innovator in hydrologic engineering, and a professional community leader. He has brought unique contributions to flood risk management from basic theory to various applications. Since 2000 when the ICFM was established, Professor Plate’s vision about this conference series has been maintained the same to this day: “International Conference on Flood Management (ICFM) offers an international conference platform, hosted every 3 years, to discuss a range of flood related issues and provides a unique opportunity for various specialists including engineers, planners, natural and social scientists, health specialists, disaster managers, decision makers, and policy makers to come together to exchange ideas and experiences.”

Erich J. Plate graduated from Stuttgart Technical University as a Civil Engineer in 1954 and there submitted his PhD thesis in 1964. He was appointed as professor of water resources at Stuttgart University,  Colorado State University, and Karlsruhe Technical University where he also directed the Karlsruhe Institute for Hydrology and Water Resources.  He was an active member and leader of the International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research.

Until almost his last moments he remained involved and highly interested in the ICFM activities. The ICFM community honored him, as a founding father, with the “Erich Plate Best Young Scientist Poster Award” presented at each ICFM conference. Professor Plate will be missed forever, and his knowledge and vision will continue to guide the ICFM in the future.