How can we make buildings more resilient before – and after – earthquakes? We put one solution to the test

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · Jun 10, 2026 · 761 words · By Ashkan Hashemi

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What to know about How can we make buildings more resilient before – and after – earthquakes? We put one solution to the test

The article discusses the development and testing of a modular cross-laminated timber (CLT) building system designed to be both sustainable and earthquake-resilient. Researchers at the University of Auckland used a shake table to demonstrate that a specific connection system allows buildings to self-center and minimize structural damage after seismic events.

Propaganda risk 10%

Claims checked 7

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center75%

Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

This week’s magnitude 7.8 earthquake in the Philippines came with scenes familiar to New Zealanders: collapsed buildings, shattered facades and streets strewn with rubble.

Why it matters

Earthquakes of such force test buildings to their extreme limits.

Common ground

As occurred this week, and in Christchurch in 2011, some ultimately fail with tragic consequences.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: How can we make buildings more resilient before – and after – earthquakes? We put one solution to the test?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that the construction sector is under growing pressure to shrink its substantial share of global greenhouse emissions?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/how-can-we-make-buildings-more-resilient-before-and-…

analyticsAnalysis

10%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 95%

Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 7 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 4

info Single Source 1

verified Verified By Reference 1

verified Verified 1

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Claim 1: “the construction sector is under growing pressure to shrink its substantial share of global greenhouse emissions.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm the construction sector's significant impact on global emissions, with one source citing a figure as high as 37% of global emissions.

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web search NEUTRAL — Sep 12, 2023 ... ... greenhouse gases, accounting for a staggering 37% of global emissions ... significant carbon footprint. Historically, much of the sector's ...
https://www.unep.org/resources/report/building-materials-and…

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web search NEUTRAL — The global construction industry is responsible for considerable effects on the environment and society. The construction and use of our built environment ...
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1757-899X/1218/1/…

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web search NEUTRAL — Of those total emissions, building operations are responsible for approximately 27% annually, while the embodied carbon of just four building and infrastructure ...
https://www.architecture2030.org/why-the-built-environment/

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Claim 2: “While the test building was physically two storeys high, additional weight was added at roof level to replicate the forces experienced by a typical three-storey building – one of the most common forms of medium-density housing in New Zealand.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While sources confirm the existence of medium-density housing (MDH) in New Zealand and define it as up to six storeys, there is no independent corroboration specifically stating that three-storey buildings are 'one of the most common forms' of this housing.

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web search NEUTRAL — Many modern buildings are designed to protect lives, but often at the cost of damage that can take years and millions of dollars to repair. Some quake-damaged buildings have ultimately been demolished…
https://techxplore.com/news/2026-06-resilient-earthquakes-so…

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web search NEUTRAL — Enabling the development of medium density housing (MDH) is an important part of Auckland Council’s work to deliver a quality compact urban form, in the face of both ongoing population growth and need…
https://www.knowledgeauckland.org.nz/media/hykju24h/tr2024-0…

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web search NEUTRAL — The typology-based definition: “MDH” (Medium Density Housing), “multi-unit dwellings of up to six storeys (above ground).” is limiting. Successful, desirable medium density neighbourhoods are nuanced …
https://isthmus.co.nz/thinking/suburban-and-proud/

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Claim 3: “we built a full-scale, modular CLT building and tested it on the University of Auckland’s “shake table” simulator.”

CORROBORATED

Two independent web sources (Modern Sciences and Wood Central) explicitly mention the University of Auckland's 'shake table' simulator being used to test a full-scale modular CLT building.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Under New Zealand law, a licensing trust is a community-owned company with a government-authorised monopoly on the development of premises licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages and associated a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Licensing_trust

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of all airline codes. The table lists the IATA airline designators, the ICAO airline designators and the airline call signs (telephony designator). Historical assignments are also inclu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airline_codes

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of times at which nations, and some subnational divisions, had their first color television broadcasts (transmissions available to the public). Non-public field-tests, closed-circuit de…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_introduction_o…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 4: “As a renewable material, it stores carbon absorbed during tree growth and can reduce the embodied emissions of buildings compared with concrete and steel.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm that CLT stores carbon and offers a reduction in embodied emissions compared to steel and concrete.

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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 29, 2023 ... Some research has shown that cross-laminated timber—which can store carbon—could be a big improvement over steel and concrete, but the benefits ...
https://climate.mit.edu/ask-mit/how-does-climate-impact-cros…

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web search NEUTRAL — (2024) showed that substituting concrete walls with CLT elements achieved a 14.42 % reduction in carbon emissions. Liu et al. (2016) also reported that CLT ...
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092134492…

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web search NEUTRAL — CLT offers the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using timber, which requires much less energy to produce than steel or concrete and naturally ...
https://tallwoodinstitute.org/research/sustainability-the-en…

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Claim 5: “This week’s magnitude 7.8 earthquake in the Philippines came with scenes familiar to New Zealanders: collapsed buildings, shattered facades and streets strewn with rubble.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources (Fox Weather, WFP, and KÜRE Encyclopedia) confirm a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the Philippines (specifically Mindanao/Sarangani).

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A powerful magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck offshore west of Maasim, Sarangani in southern Philippines on Monday. WFP is deploying staff & emergency equipment to support the Government set up a tempora…
https://news.google.com/stories/CAAqNggKIjBDQklTSGpvSmMzUnZj…

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web search NEUTRAL — The Philippines is one of the most seismically active countries in the world due to its location on the active Pacific Ring of Fire — the massive, 25,000-mile ring of volcanoes and tectonic plate boun…
https://www.foxweather.com/extreme-weather/magnitude-7-8-ear…

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web search NEUTRAL — Seismological Data. The earthquake’s magnitude was measured at 7.8 (mww) by the USGS. According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), the quake occurred at a depth of 3…
https://kureansiklopedi.com/en/detay/2026-mindanao-earthquak…

verified

Claim 6: “As occurred this week, and in Christchurch in 2011, some ultimately fail with tragic consequences.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia and NZ History both confirm a major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on February 22, 2011.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Christchurch ( ; Māori: Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island and the second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of 407,800, and a me…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christchurch

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand. Christchurch may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christchurch_(disambiguation)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 15 March 2019, two consecutive terrorist mass shootings took place in Christchurch, New Zealand. They were committed during Friday prayer, first at the Al Noor Mosque in Riccarton at 1:40 p.m., and…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christchurch_mosque_shootings

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 7: “cross-laminated timber (CLT) – is made by bonding layers of timber boards together at right angles, creating large structural panels that can be used to construct multi-storey buildings.”

VERIFIED

Web search results describe CLT as consisting of multiple layers of timber bonded together, used for structural panels in buildings.

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web search NEUTRAL — This is raising the need for building systems that are sustainable and resilient. Last month, in one of the country’s most demanding full-scale earthquake tests, we assessed an emerging timber-based t…
https://modernsciences.org/modular-clt-timber-seismic-resili…

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web search NEUTRAL — CLT consists of multiple layers of timber, and when it burns the outer face forms a layer of char which protects the internal layers. The panels are designed to meet 60 to 120 minute fire ratings. The…
https://selfbuild.ie/advice/cross-laminated-timber-for-self-…

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web search NEUTRAL — A full-scale cross-laminated timber building let its storeys move independently through escalating shake-table tests at the University of Auckland — then settled back to its original position with the…
https://woodcentral.com.au/auckland-timber-modular-earthquak…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.