David J. Isern, ARdP, AIA, NOMA is the Associate Director for Academic Affairs at the School of Architecture at the University of Illinois. He is an architect and urbanist working in Latin America and looking at urban informality in Lima, Peru, and the agency of native communities in the city development and growth.

David is the founder of David J. Isern Studio, a speculative and research practice that intervenes at different scales as part of the design spectrum, generating creative and innovative solutions for a sustainable, diverse, and equitable future in the built environment.

David was a researcher at the University of Cambridge Centre of Latin American Studies and a member of Darwin College. He was the Director of Communications, Marketing, and Outreach at Texas Tech University for over six years and has practice architecture in the USA and abroad. He is a member of the Forbes Communications Council and the recipient of numerous awards for his professional design work and leadership roles in higher education.