Dr. Irie joined the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (now the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) of the Japanese Government in 1979 after the graduation from the University of Tokyo with a Bachelor of Law degree.  He earned a Master of Science degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University in 1988 and a Doctorate in Energy Science from Kyoto University in 2002. He had worked mainly in energy and trade policy, including a posting at the Japanese Embassy in Canberra, Australia, and in policy planning and studies at the Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI) and other divisions. After retiring as Director-General of the Training Institute of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in 2008, he worked at the University of Tokyo as Professor in charge of research and education on nuclear policy and law until 2012. From 2012 to 2018, he worked as General Manager of APERC as well as Senior Research Fellow of IEEJ. In 2018, he was promoted to President of APERC and Managing Director of IEEJ. He took up his current position in April 2020 at the independence of APERC.