Project Concept
The challenge
In 2015, images of the devastation caused by the Nepal earthquake were beamed around the world: 9,000 lives lost, 3.5 million people left homeless, and entire neighbourhoods flattened. How do we stop that happening again?
While we can’t reduce the risk of earthquakes, we can improve our resilience to them. Collapsing buildings greatly increased the fatalities in 2015 and caused severe, long-term social and economic consequences. The challenge for Nepal, and other low-to-middle income countries, is finding ways to make buildings more secure so that lives aren’t put at excessive risk and so that communities can recover more quickly at an affordable financial cost.
While we can’t reduce the risk of earthquakes, we can improve our resilience to them. Collapsing buildings greatly increased the fatalities in 2015 and caused severe, long-term social and economic consequences. The challenge for Nepal, and other low-to-middle income countries, is finding ways to make buildings more secure so that lives aren’t put at excessive risk and so that communities can recover more quickly at an affordable financial cost.
What we are doing
This landmark project draws on knowledge and experience from Nepal and around the world, incorporating earthquake, structural and geotechnical engineers, seismologists, earth scientists, computer scientists, social scientists, stakeholders, decision-makers and more. Together, we’re working to save lives by making buildings safer – starting with schools. We’re using the seismic shaking table of the University of Bristol, to see how replicas of Nepalese classrooms, strengthened with cost-effective techniques, perform under seismic excitation.
Based on this lab work, we’re developing a simple, state-of-the-art phone app that lets local engineers identify at-risk schools and enhance their safety.
One proven method of protecting new buildings in earthquake zones in developed countries is to rest them on sliding surfaces. It’s prohibitively expensive for many regions, but in Nepal, we’re using that principle to investigate low-cost, culturally acceptable, locally-sourced ways of co-producing a similar system.
All our research is supported by workshops and on-site training so, with the aid of our local and international partners, we leave behind the skills and expertise for communities to rebuild Nepal safely.
Based on this lab work, we’re developing a simple, state-of-the-art phone app that lets local engineers identify at-risk schools and enhance their safety.
One proven method of protecting new buildings in earthquake zones in developed countries is to rest them on sliding surfaces. It’s prohibitively expensive for many regions, but in Nepal, we’re using that principle to investigate low-cost, culturally acceptable, locally-sourced ways of co-producing a similar system.
All our research is supported by workshops and on-site training so, with the aid of our local and international partners, we leave behind the skills and expertise for communities to rebuild Nepal safely.
How it helps
Our work provides diagnosis, testing and knowledge, but it’s also preparing Nepal to mitigate the risk associated with future earthquake events. We’re creating a framework that allows local decision-makers to plan for and react to another major earthquake and our collaboration will improve local design culture through new, safer, construction techniques that can be easily replicated by other countries. Most importantly of all, we’re helping protect lives, especially the lives of the young learners who will shape Nepal’s future.