T4D Safer traditional houses
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Location : Pakistan
Problem
In northern Pakistan, families often live in houses built with stone, adobe, or concrete blocks that are poorly reinforced against earthquakes. Timber, which is essential for safer designs, is increasingly scarce and expensive, while transport costs make construction less affordable. Past reconstruction projects mostly focused on public buildings, leaving households themselves highly exposed to seismic risk.
Challenge
The challenge is to create housing solutions that are both safe and affordable, while still reflecting what families actually want. Comfort, proper ventilation, watertight roofs, separation between cooking and living spaces, and a traditional look that connects to cultural identity all matter just as much as seismic safety.
Solution
The project brings together researchers, NGOs, and local universities to rethink how homes are built. By working hand in hand with masons, carpenters, and homeowners, the team is testing local building types and reinforcing them with smarter, more efficient methods. The aim is to design safer homes that use less timber, keep costs manageable, and respond to community needs, including options for two-storey. Demonstration houses will be built directly with families, giving them a choice between traditional or modern designs. Training local builders ensures that safer practices spread beyond the pilot phase, while women’s input guarantees that comfort and functionality are fully integrated into the final solutions.
Impact
The project will deliver houses that can withstand earthquakes and at the same time offer families healthier, more comfortable living conditions. By cutting costs through smarter material use and reducing environmental pressure on timber supplies, it supports both resilience and sustainability. Local builders and apprentices will gain new skills, boosting employment and craftsmanship. And because similar housing challenges exist in Nepal, Afghanistan, Peru, and beyond, the lessons learned in Pakistan could help make vulnerable communities worldwide safe
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Dominika joined Tech4Dev program in 2024 as a Project Manager, where she leads innovation projects in collaboration with research teams, international organisations, and local partners. Her work bridges technology transfer and sustainable development, with a focus on delivering context-adapted solutions in low-resource settings.
She brings over a decade of experience managing projects and partnerships across the humanitarian, development, and climate sectors. She has worked with organisations such as the Gold Standard Foundation, Medair, CARE, and Special Olympics, working on initiatives in social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and emergency response.
Before joining Tech4Dev, she led Medair’s innovation partnerships programme, building collaborations to pilot technologies - from blockchain-based tools to biodegradable materials - in crisis-affected settings. At Gold Standard, she worked on strategic initiatives in the carbon markets and helped advance sustainable finance solutions. Earlier in her career, she managed community projects on rural development, disability inclusion, and migration across Latin America and the Balkans.
She holds a Master’s in Human Rights and Humanitarian Action from Sciences Po Paris.
Ksenia holds an MSc in Integrated Innovation for Product and Business Development from HES-SO and a BSc in Media Engineering. At EPFL, she served as Project Manager for the Innovation Booster Robotics, an Innosuisse-funded program, where she coordinated calls for proposals, supported early-stage project teams, and led communication efforts across Switzerland’s robotics ecosystem. As part of this role, she co-organized Swiss Robotics Day2025, a flagship event that brought together over 1,000 participants from industry and academia. Her background in digital strategy, UX/UI, and web development includes contributions to projects enhancing user experience, information architecture, and online visibility within academic and innovation-focused environments. Ksenia joined the Centre in February 2026 as Project and Communications Manager for the Tech4Dev Programme.
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T4D Smarter mapping for recovery
