Co-Director Urban Design, Planning & Development at Drees & Sommer | Switzerland

Haris Piplas designs entire cities. Having lived in Berlin, Sarajevo, Milan, Copenhagen, Vienna, and Zürich, he is imbued with their radical spirit, which he brings to his plans for urban development and infrastructure planning. Knowledge and diverse visions are at the heart of Haris’ work, with research, stakeholder participation, and activism all influencing how he conceptualises practical solutions. He wants to fully understand the city he aims to change. As such, Haris develops tools, methodologies, and mechanisms that combine interests, opinions, and expertise to create an inclusive city structure. His work stretches as far and wide as the Mediterranean, Switzerland, Germany, Eastern Europe, the Balkans, China, and Latin America. Among his many positions, Haris has stood as the former Young Leader Chairman of the Urban Land Institute, and a member of the Advisory Board for Built Environment of the European Forum Alpbach. He is a member of ISOCARP (the International Society of City and Regional Planners) and sits on the Advisory Board of the Kyiv Canactions School of Urban Studies and the Reconstruction Expert Committee of the Ukrainian National Union of Architects. As well as being a keynote speaker, teacher, and researcher, Haris is the author and collaborator of numerous notable initiatives, including the Smart City and Urban Innovation Strategy Jakarta, Climate-adaptive strategy for Mannheim “Smartilience”, and the Neighbourhood Concepts for Basel, Berlin, and Milan, among other cities. Haris holds a master’s in urban design and a doctorate from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich and has been nominated for the Aga Khan Prize for Architecture.