Houssam Elokda

Operations Manager & Senior Planner, Happy City

Houssam is a community designer, transit planner and systems builder at Happy City, an urban design and research firm focused on making cities happier, healthier and more inclusive. His evidence-based approach helps city builders develop urban plans, policies and systems that boost human wellbeing. Houssam has led complex masterplanning and policy projects in diverse settings that range from rural Nova Scotia to metropoles such as Dubai, Cairo and Vancouver. He also led our groundbreaking collaboration with neuroscientists to examine the psycho-social effects of public space design in West Palm Beach. Houssam plays leadership roles in various urbanist organizations. He is a co-founder and board chairman at Transport for Cairo, a mobility firm that pioneers data collection methods to improve informal transportation networks in emerging cities. He also sits on the board of organizations that work in real estate development and transit advocacy.