ABOUT

A plat·form /ˈplatfôrm/ is an elevated surface on which to stand. It is also a space to make ideas public and to initiate action. Urban Platform builds a foundation for a transdisciplinary network of architects, planners, geographers, historians, economists, engineers, and computer scientists exploring the conditions of contemporary urban growth. We are based in San Antonio, Texas—one of the oldest and fastest-growing cities in the United States.

Ian Caine founded Urban Platform in 2018. He is an Associate Professor and a Distinguished Teaching Professor. From 2018 to 2025, he served as Director of the UTSA Center for Urban and Regional Planning Research, leading applied design and planning efforts across South Texas and the Lower Rio Grande Valley. In 2023, he received the SOM Foundation Research Fellowship, leading a team exploring the retrofit of commercial strips with multifamily housing. His work appears in Log, MONU, Scenario, The Plan Journal, and Housing Studies, with additional coverage in popular press outlets such as the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Metropolis, The Discovery Channel Canada, and Texas Public Radio. His design collaborations have earned multiple international honors, including first prize in the Rising Tides competition and recognition in the Build-a-Better-Burb, Dry Futures, and the Modular Home Edition #2 competitions. His work has also received design awards from the AIA and APA and been exhibited in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Toronto, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

A dedicated educator, Caine received the 2017 ACSA|AIAS New Faculty Teaching Award, 2017 UT Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award, 2016 UTSA President’s Distinguished Teaching Award, and was selected for the Architecture 2030 Pilot Curriculum Project, which highlighted a course developed with Dr. Rahman Azari as a national model to “transform the culture of sustainable design education.” He has also taught as a visiting faculty member in urban design at Washington University. He holds degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (SMArchS) and Washington University (MArch), where he received the AIA School Medal.

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