Sustainable and Seismically Resilient Confined Masonry: Global Progress in Research and Design Practice

Modern confined masonry (CM) construction consists of masonry walls confined by reinforced concrete (RC) tie‐columns and tie‐beams. When built correctly, CM buildings have shown good performance in earthquake's shaking. Even though CM construction has been practised for almost a century in some Latin American countries, its use and standardisation are limited in other seismically active regions of the world. Considering its efficient, adaptable and affordable construction technique, and the evidence of safe performance in earthquake‐prone areas, there is great economic, technical and sustainability potential in its wider application. In this context, the UNESCO Chair in Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Engineering (UNESCO Chair DRR_RE) at UCL, supported by the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), ARUP and Build Change, organised, in February 2024, a 2‐day virtual Symposium on Recent Advances and The Way Forward in CM Construction Technology . This paper synthesises insights from the Symposium and subsequent knowledge exchanges among experts and practitioners from over 14 countries. Four themes are examined in detail: status of seismic design codes and research developments related to CM structures across the world, use of CM for construction of school buildings, seismic retrofitting of existing CM structures, and durability and adaptation to climate change for a sustainable future. The paper identifies technical research challenges under each theme and provides strategic guidance to widen knowledge and practice of CM construction globally.