UBCO Engineering Assistant Professor Dr. Lisa Tobber (right) with Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr. Ana Isabel Sarkis Fernandez
Dr. Lisa Tobber’s collaboration with New Zealand researchers aims to strengthen the safety and resilience of prefabricated buildings
A UBC Okanagan engineering researcher is helping lead an international effort to make buildings safer in earthquake-prone regions.
Dr. Lisa Tobber, Assistant Professor in the School of Engineering, has been awarded a Catalyst International Leader Fellowship from New Zealand’s Royal Society Te Apārangi. The fellowship will support a three-year research collaboration between UBC and the University of Canterbury focused on improving the seismic performance of prefabricated concrete buildings through the development of high-ductility structural connections.
The project addresses a challenge shared by both Canada and New Zealand: how to safely expand the use of prefabricated construction while maintaining high standards of seismic resilience.
Although prefabrication can improve housing affordability, construction efficiency and sustainability, the structural connections used to join building components remain a critical area for improvement in regions vulnerable to earthquakes, notes Dr. Tobber.
Working alongside Professor Geoffrey Rodgers of the University of Canterbury, Dr. Tobber will combine expertise in prefabricated concrete systems, seismic damping technologies, large-scale experimental testing and advanced nonlinear modelling to develop new connection technologies capable of improving building performance during earthquakes.
The research will include coordinated testing programs in both countries and will ultimately support the development of practical design guidance for industry.
“This fellowship is especially meaningful because it supports a long-term collaboration between UBC and the University of Canterbury on a problem that matters in both Canada and New Zealand: how to make prefabricated construction safer and more resilient in earthquake-prone regions,” says Dr. Tobber.
“The project will allow us to combine expertise in precast concrete systems, seismic damping, large-scale experimental testing and nonlinear modelling to develop high-ductility connection technologies that are practical for real buildings. I am particularly excited that the fellowship supports sustained time in New Zealand, which will help build a deeper research partnership, create training opportunities for students and support translation of the work into design guidance for industry,” she adds.
The fellowship will support multiple research exchanges to New Zealand, culminating in an extended sabbatical residency that will allow Dr. Tobber and her collaborators to undertake large-scale testing, develop industry guidelines and pursue future joint research initiatives.
Dr. Lisa Tobber in the lab at UBC Okanagan.
Since joining UBC Okanagan in 2021, Dr. Tobber has established a nationally recognized research program focused on resilient and sustainable building systems. Her work has helped advance seismic design approaches for prefabricated concrete structures and contributed to the development of Canadian engineering standards and building codes. In 2025, she was named a Peter Wall Fellow, one of UBC’s most prestigious research distinctions, recognizing researchers whose work has the potential to address significant societal challenges.
“Dr. Tobber’s work focuses on practical challenges that affect communities around the world, and this fellowship reflects both the quality and real impact her research is having from the local to the international level,” says Dr. Will Hughes, Director of the School of Engineering. “We’re pleased to see Lisa’s expertise recognized internationally and excited about the opportunities this partnership will create for research, student training and knowledge exchange between Canada and New Zealand.”
The Catalyst International Leader Fellowship supports international research partnerships that create new knowledge, strengthen research capability and address issues of global significance. Through this collaboration, researchers from both countries will work toward safer, more resilient and more scalable approaches to prefabricated construction in seismic regions.