Master in Advanced Urban Planning & Data Analytics

Serjoscha is a PhD Candidate in the City Intelligence at the Austrian Institute of Technology in Vienna. He teaches at the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, the Bauhaus University in Weimar and the University of applied arts Vienna.
Before joining the AIT, he studied economics and china studies at the university of Hamburg and Integrated Urban Development and Design at the Bauhaus University Weimar and Tongji University Shanghai.
His research interest lies in cities as complex systems and the interplay of spatial configurations with socio-economic patters of self organization. For his PhD he focuses on developing integrated workflows for performance driven urban design and simulation.

Serjoscha is interested in applying spatial data analysis with simulation methods in the realm of performance driven urban planning and design with a particular interest in the intersection of top?down driven development and evolutionary city growth.

Ramon Gras (Harvard’18, MIT’15, BarcelonaTech’10) is a City Scientist and Urban Designer from Barcelona, working on the urban innovation space. He is co-founder of Aretian, a company that develops boutique consulting projects involving city science, urban design and economic development, as well as software development services to address city design, Real Estate, and urban development processes.
At Harvard, Ramon graduated from the inaugural cohort of the Harvard MDE program, where he developed research around urban design criteria for innovation districts operating in synergy with logistics hubs. Prior to developing his thesis at Harvard, Ramon worked at Ferrovial’s Innovation office in London, where he led design and technology projects at the London Heathrow Airport and the London Underground. Ramon developed at MIT urban design projects for the Kendall Square expansion and Somerville Innovation Districts in the Boston Area. Ramon’s thesis at MIT addressed the consolidation problem in air freight transportation by designing an advanced Business Intelligence platform. He expanded his training at MIT after working as a designer in major infrastructure projects involving urban design, maritime infrastructure, high speed rail, and architectural design (a Richard Rogers project). In 2023 Ramon Gras joined IAAC as MaCT Faculty.

Nico Schouten joins Metabolic as the team lead of the Built Environment team. He focuses on the implementation of circular principles and systems-thinking in building projects. He works with architects to create clear frameworks on how to design and realise the circular buildings of the future.

While undertaking a Masters in Architecture at the faculty of Architecture and the Built environment at the TU Delft, Nico became interested in using what he was learning to build a more sustainable world. This led him to further research the concept of systems thinking, and how to implement circular strategies in his designs.

Nico has worked on a wide range of building projects, focused on urban natural ecologies, waste systems, renewable energy, and happy and healthy communities in different geographies.

His background as an architect, coupled with his experience in collaborative urban design processes and systems thinking, allows him to integrate knowledge on ecological impacts with creative solutions that engage novel technologies and are sensitive to social issues.

Davide Rovera is an Entrepreneurship Lecturer and Startup Mentor, with international experience in the consulting and industrial industries as well as the b2b SaaS and growth spaces.

Davide is a Lecturer at the Department of Strategy and General Management at Esade Business School, where he teaches Entrepreneurship and Product Management courses both at the undergrad and graduate level. He is the co-founder and Manager of eWorks, Esade’s venture creation program, which provides support to students and recent graduates working on the creation of high growth companies. He’s an adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship for IAAC and Porto Business School, and an Advisor to Feat Ventures and Fondazione CRT. He’s the Managing Partner of Kili Ventures.

From 2017 to 2019 he collaborated with Fusion Point, a project created in partnership between Esade, UPC (Polytechnic University of Catalunya) and IED (Istituto Europeo di Design) and part of the Design Factory Global Network. He has been part of the founding team of Fusion Point, then covered the role of Industry Collaboration Manager.

Davide is particularly interested in supporting early stage ventures, especially at the intersection between technology, design and business with a particular focus on AI, Education and Web3. He is an investor and advisor to multiple early stage startups in different industries.

Davide is a volunteer for the Startup Africa Roadtrip program, supporting sub saharan African entrepreneurs.

Before joining Esade, he worked as a Consultant in the Business Development and Special Projects area of CNH Industrial, one of the world’s largest capital goods companies. He acquired international startup experience by leading the US Business Development efforts in San Francisco for an Italian startup, Vivocha and co-created an incubator for web 2.0 projects, Treatabit.

He holds a M.Sc. in Industrial Engineering and Management from Politecnico di Torino (Italy) and completed his studies at RWTH Aachen (Germany) and Kent University (UK).

Shyam Francesco Zonca is a product designer, who focuses on creating truly durable and richly detailed goods within the creative process.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from Politecnico di Milano and with two academic experiences in Brazil and Portugal, and a Master of Science in Product Design for Innovation.

Since he moved to Spain in 2017 he has been working with digital manufacturing in the academic area, IED and IAAC; and in projects that integrate digital technologies with handcrafted finishes.

In Milan and Rio de Janeiro he worked as Creative and Project Manager in different areas of design, including products, furniture, digital fabrication, events and visual merchandising. Following this line, he has executed not only creation works, but also collaborated with craftsman and production control.

Cristian Rizzuti is an interactive media artist based in Barcelona and Rome. He graduated in Visual and Multimedia Art and completed the M-IA Master at IUAV University of Venice, specialising in interactive immersive environments.

Cristian has exhibited his work at major European events and venues, including Sonar Barcelona, MAXXI museum in Rome, Venice Biennale, and ZKM museum in Karlsruhe. Drawing inspiration from science and mathematics, his work explores human perception and the creation of synesthetic spaces, combining emotional soundscapes with physical experiences.

His installations, influenced by digital arts, live media, and interactive experiments, are often described as light sculptures.

Leyla Saadi is an urbanist and storyteller who is committed to the betterment of life in cities and human settlements. She is passionate about creating better places, reducing waste, and promoting social equality through design. Leyla has been practicing urban design and architecture internationally for nearly a decade. She has worked with high-profile clients & consultants on a wide range of Mixed-use Developments leading the delivery of several concept and detailed master planning packages.
After obtaining a master’s degree in Cities and technology at IAAC, Leyla has been working closely with Geographic Data and mapping for several large-scale projects involving contextual urban studies, identification of opportunities and constrains through big data analysis and setting out future development strategies. She recently founded Urban Col.labs, a collaboration of international experts in the fields of Urban Design, Art, and Technology. Urban Col.labs strives to merge the worlds of Urbanism, Public Art, and Data Science to create unique and creative solutions for cities and the public space. In 2023 Leyla Saadi joined IAAC as MaCT Faculty.

Daniil Koshelyuk is a computational designer, creative coder, and architect holding a Bachelor of Architecture and Master of Advanced Architecture (MAA02) from IAAC. Daniil has been working with interactive installations, merging physical computing and computational design tools; mixed reality projects in a range of applications from product design to urban analysis; and teaching and assisting seminars and workshops in computational design, physical computing, and mixed reality.

In his career, Daniil has been exploring situations where, in a broad sense of the words, physical and digital layers intersect. His interests centre around creating smarter, more responsive, and interactive environments by digitally enhancing architecture, creating tools for unconventional interactivity, and managing and designing complex systems.

Marziah Zad is continuously cultivating an architectural design approach that is positioned at the intersection of investigative, computational design and a celebration of existing narratives related to place and identity. Marziah developed professional experience in Lebanon, Spain, Iran, and West Coast USA before cofounding Ashrafi & Zad Design in 2019. The practice is founded on aspirations rooted in experimental design and construction innovation, with projects ranging from the intimate scale to the territorial. The firm has been awarded multiple distinctions for designed and completed projects.

Marziah has architecture instructional experience at the University of Oregon and San Jose State University in California, USA. As an instructor in practice, much of her teaching is based in research, and her design courses focus on the link between experimental digital design techniques and social empowerment issues. She has also collaborated on various research initiatives, including an extensive Global Justice Project focused on lightweight structures for adaptive refugee housing. This research was funded by a grant from the Savage Endowment for International Relations and Peace.

Through defining geometry as a language of expression that communicates with identity, Marziah takes advantage of her technical experience and personal background to explore how generative design systems can benefit communities. She is committed to finding design solutions that are at once deeply rooted in locality while acknowledging a universal identity in a globalized world.

Androniki is an architect and research fellow at the RE-DWELL MSCA-ITN, currently doing her Ph.D. at ISCTE, Lisbon on urban commons and participatory urbanism. She holds a Masters in Architectural Engineering from the University of Patras, Greece (2016) and an MA in Architecture and Historic Urban Environments from the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL (2019).

Her independent work, as well as collaborations with international studios, has given her professional experience in diverse projects including architectural and interior design, landscape and urban scale projects and masterplans, as well as policy and guideline reports. She has also worked as a research assistant at the Municipality of Lisbon (2022) and the Hellenic Institute of Architecture (2016) and recently been involved in teaching.

Her research incentives relate to the concept of urban commons, community self-sustainable socio-spatial mechanisms and placemaking, exploring interdisciplinary methodologies that work across architecture, art (installation, model making, film) ethnography, social studies and urban theory. She is also actively participating in exhibitions, lectures, workshops and conferences as a co-organizer, researcher and volunteer.

Maria Isabel da Rocha Lima is a Brazilian architect, urban strategist, and researcher. She is the coordinator of the Master in Advanced Urban Planning & Data Analytics (formerly City & Technology) and a researcher at the Urban Sciences Lab at IAAC. Isabel holds a Master’s in Urban Management and Development from IHS, Erasmus University of Rotterdam.

She has worked in Portugal and Brazil, specialising in public participation and conducting workshops on urban rehabilitation, capacity building, the right to the city, and sustainable development. Her roles have included moderator, project manager, and researcher. Isabel has also served on the Alumni Board at IHS, representing the organisation at the World Urban Forum (WUF) and moderating a training event on small-scale initiatives.
Her research focuses on urban strategies, participatory planning, governance, and the right to the city.

Adrien Ravon is an architect operating across the boundaries of different disciplines by combining both theoretical and technical approach. Ravon completed his studies at FADU-UBA and ENSAPM, Paris, where he defended his Master’s thesis. In parallel to his academic path in architecture, Ravon has studied programming, multimedia and interactive games. After collaborating as an architect with Jakob+MacFarlane in Paris, Ravon joined The Why Factory in 2011 as a teacher and researcher. He has worked on various projects and had a key position in advancing the Future Models course, which provides specific computing support to The Why Factory’s work. He co-authored The Why Factory’s publication Barba, life in a fully adaptable environment and is now supervising The Why Factory’s graduation unit. Adrien has worked with the Berlage Institute, Rotterdam; ETH Zürich; KTH Stockholm, EIT ICT Labs, and the IIT in Chicago.