David Sim

With some 20 translations to date, “Soft City” has established David Sim as a thought-leader in urban livability and sustainability planning.

David started his architecture studies in his native Scotland but after hearing Jan Gehl’s lectures he moved to Scandinavia to complete his education. After a distinguished career teaching architecture at Lund University in Sweden, where he received the student-nominated “the teacher of the year” prize, he spent 17 years at the renowned Gehl urban planning practice, most notably as Creative Director, seeing it grow from 4 people in an attic to a world brand with offices in Copenhagen, New York and San Francisco.

A well-respected practitioner, David Sim has an impressive portfolio, personally leading master plans, urban strategies and design work across the globe, from the Highlands of Scotland to the lakes of Patagonia, from suburban Melbourne to downtown Tokyo, from finding new ways to build IKEA stores to rebuilding Christchurch after the devastating 2011 earthquake.

Based in Sweden, David Sim now works with his own consultancy company, making cities, towns and villages softer.



He has worked on numerous plans, from transit areas in Tokyo to an urban planning framework for city recovery in Christchurch, New Zealand after the 2011 earthquake, and is currently working on a master plan for St Saveur, a new part of Lille in France.