Join this free(!) Back to School event hosted by U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) with COTE chapters from AIA Northern Virginia, AIA|DC, and AIA Potomac Valley for this Tri-COTE event. Team members from USGBC will share key information related to the release of LEED v5, important differences from past LEED versions, and intent of the newest rating system. USGBC has graciously offered to host us at their Headquarters office in Foggy Bottom. The event will be hosted at the building’s rooftop penthouse, with light snacks and refreshments provided. We hope to see you there!

HSW Justification:

This course addresses how buildings can measure their impact across a variety of measures in the LEED system. This content is eligible for HSW as it fits the definition of “Health,” clearly impacting “the physical, emotional, and social well-being of occupants, users, and any others affected by buildings and sites,” and “Welfare,” focusing on design that “benefits the environment.” Specifically, the content of this course addresses topics relating to human health, environmental responsibility and the expansion of the LEED v5 program’s efforts to address a greater range of metrics as our industry has continued to advance our understanding of our impact.

Learning Objectives:

• Analyze the three pillars which LEED v5 focuses: decarbonization, quality of life, and ecological conservation.
• Learn about new prerequisites for the credit categories of climate resilience, carbon assessment, and human impact.
• Understand primary updates of LEED v5 from previous versions of LEED.
• Insight into LEED Rating System: Prerequisites & Credits and the credit categories associated.

Beyer Binder Belle will be giving us a tour of their beautiful restoration and adaptive reuse work on the Carnegie Library near Mount Vernon Square. The library opened in 1902 as one of the thousands funded by industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Designed by New York-firm Ackerman and Ross, the 63,000-square-foot library is a handsome Beaux-Arts assembly; the building, which follows a rectangular plan, rises from a granite base and transitions to Vermont Marble and is punctured by monumental arched windows and narrow rows of clerestories. A riot of masonry detailing occurs at the southern elevation’s primary entrance with a portico of Ionic columns flanked with pedimented end pavilions—tympanums, festoons, and medallions are stitched between the larger architectural elements. The roofline is pronounced with bands of dentils and brackets, as well as acroteria.

Group to meet at the front steps of the Apple Store at 6:00pm for the start of the tour. 

Presented by:

Jill Cavanaugh and Brad Cambridge

Learning Objectives: 

• Attain a brief history of the Carnegie Library and the context in which it was constructed.
• Learn about the architecture component of restoration in this buildings adaptive reuse.
• Learn about the revisions to the building needed to accommodate its current uses.
• Explore the urban design components and how they relate between the building and the park in which it sits.

Join us for the opening of our latest exhibition, Boliglaboratorium: A Danish Housing Lab.

Boliglaboratorium: A Danish Housing Lab showcases six groundbreaking projects by Danish architecture firms that explore ways in which housing can respond to some of the greatest challenges of our time. Housing across the world today is affected by climate change, resource scarcity, new family patterns, rise of loneliness, and shrinking rural communities. Big cities are struggling to keep up with the influx of newcomers.

On view through December 2025 and in partnership with the Scan Design Foundation, the models presented in this exhibition are real-life housing projects across urban and rural Denmark that experiment with new blueprints to build for modern life. The Housing Lab was first exhibited in Copenhagen in 2023 as part of the UIA World Congress of Architects. A Pacific Northwest tour in the United States was presented by Scan Design Foundation, in partnership with the Danish Embassy in Washington DC, from November 2024 to May 2025. Scan Design Foundation’s mission is to support the cross-cultural exchange between Denmark and the U.S.

We welcome your presence at this opening and invite you to attend. Drinks and light hors d’oeuvres will be served. 

We are delighted to welcome Ambassador Stig P. Piras, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Denmark, who will be joining us for the opening of the exhibition.

About the Ambassador

Ambassador Stig P. Piras is the Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Denmark in the United States.

Ambassador Piras has had an extensive career in both the Foreign Service and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Denmark.

Before arriving in Washington D.C., he was Danish ambassador to the Republic of Iraq from 2020-2022. Ambassador Piras has also been, Deputy Director for Asia and Latin America, Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (2017-2020), and Deputy Head of Mission, Counsellor, at the Embassy of Denmark in Ankara, Republic of Turkey (2013-2017).

Ambassador Piras has previously worked at the Embassy of Denmark in Washington D.C., when he held the position as First Secretary for three years (2005-2008)

The District Architecture Center is excited to extend Tools of the Trade into a four-part workshop series. Open to teens in middle and high school, our mission is to introduce students to architecture in a progressive series that builds upon skills.  Exposure to the growing field of architecture at this age can expand a teen's horizons to an exciting profession. 

Each workshop includes a theme, a local field trip, and focuses on a specific skill -- such as sketching, photography, digital design, and model-making -- and ends in a presentation for family members. 

Workshops are held at the District Architecture Center on Saturdays, 10:00 am-3:00 pm. 

Dates 2025-2026: 

• November 15, 2025
• January 31, 2026
• March 14, 2026
• May 16, 2026  

AGS Stainless, an AIA Cornerstone Partner, is hosting a Golf Scramble in September, and AIA DC members are invited to participate. This networking event is a part of AGS Stainless' 2025 CRAN Symposium sponsorship.  The CRAN Symposium is being held in Alexandria, VA, this year.

You do not need to attend the Symposium to play in the scramble. Just come and have some fun!!

This presentation introduces architects and designers to the many benefits of Structural Insulated Sheathing. In addition to providing structural strength, continuous insulation and other beneficial properties, using an SIS product also provides health, safety and wellness benefits. These benefits include: no off-gassing of insulation materials on-site due to off-site construction, less carbon emissions due to a pourable urethane insulation product, reduced exposure to chemicals found in common air and water barriers that no longer need to be applied on site, reduced labor time and resources that reduce safety risks, the ability to weather-in buildings faster reducing possible interior exposure to mold and other indoor environmental factors, and reduced labor risk of accidents due to only one installation revolution being needed versus the traditional four to five.

Presented by: 

RJ Fazio
RJ is the Commercial Channel + Demand Manager for the Washington, DC metro region (Maryland, DC, NOVA). He has been with DuPont Performance Building Solutions for 4 years, and before that spend 8 years working for general contractors in the region as a Project Manager.

Learning Objectives: 

• Learn about innovations in structural insulated sheathing & continuous insulation
• Understand the benefits that some of these next-gen structural systems provide
• Compare various sheathing systems and their strengths for different building types
• Understand the value SIS systems deliver for varying project parties
  
  
   

Spacesaver, an USA-made innovative storage solutions manufacturer based in Fort Atkinson, WI, is proud to present our AIA presentation:  Preservation & Engagement: Best Practices for Collections Storage and Facility Planning.  The purpose of this presentation is to help architects design museum collections storage areas that are safe, efficient, and engaging. The first part of the presentation will touch on the current landscape of the Museum market and discuss museum workspace and workflow issues and how they are impacted by FF&E. The second portion will discuss floor loading, and structural and risk management issues unique to collections storage areas. The session will also include a brief discussion of the challenges and opportunities presented by making collections storage and work areas visible to the public. This counts toward one AIA/HSW LU or one IDCEC/HSW credit Experience Level: Basic

Presented by:

Taylor Dams

My name is Taylor Dams, I am one of the A&D Specialists at Spacesaver coming to you from our manufacturing headquarters in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin.
If this is your first exposure to Spacesaver, we design and manufacture innovative storage solutions that you will see highlighted today. Our systems have been solving our customers biggest storage challenges for over 50 years in the museum, local, state and federal government, higher education, public safety, healthcare, hospitality, and business markets, just to name a few.

 

Lisa Schauss
Spacesaver works through a nationwide network of distribution partners who can assist with all your storage projects. I would like to introduce Lisa Schauss, from Spacesaver Interiors; they are the DC Metro Area experts from initial concept to final installation, Spacesaver Interiors handles every detail while ensuring sustainable, cost-effective solutions that stand the test of time.

Learning Objectives:

• Demonstrate how interior architecture can support evolving program and space needs by incorporating storage solutions that provide safety features and promote ease of use, and that are compliant with codes to ensure occupant wellness and safety.
• Identify how to design visible collections storage as well as integrate furniture, fixtures, and equipment (FF&E) with lighting, ventilation, and disaster mitigation systems to minimize hazards to employees and museum collections.
• Gain confidence in the ability to specify storage solutions for museums that properly preserve and protect artifacts by following best practice standards while optimizing space and improving integral workflows.
• Identify how compact storage and other storage solutions support efficiency and sustainability goals to help achieve LEED certifications.

Join LA.IDEA at Henricksen DC for a tour and valuable discussion on nerodiverse populations. 

Get ready for a frightfully fun time this Halloween! Join us for a hands-on workshop where kids (and parents!) will design and build their very own haunted houses. From spooky turrets to creepy corridors, we’ll explore the architecture and creativity that bring haunted houses to life.

Event Details:

• What: Haunted House Building Workshop
• Who: Great for kids of all ages, parents are welcome to join in!
• When: October 26th, 10am-12pm
• Where: District Architecture Center
• What to Bring: Your imagination and your favorite Halloween costume
• Provided: All building materials and spooky inspiration

Highlights:

• Learn fun architectural design basics
• Build a haunted house to take home
• Costumes encouraged for added fun
• A family-friendly activity just in time for Halloween

PreciseLED presents: "Smarter Lighting: The Role of AI in Safer, Healthier Buildings". In this presentation you will learn all about how AI (Artificial Intelligence) is impacting lighting presently, and how it will impact lighting in the future.This session will discuss how AI can be used today as part of the lighting design process, and how lighting fixture with integrated AI will bring lighting into its next era.

Presented by:

Daniel Machlis

Daniel Machlis is the Northeast Regional Sales Manager for PreciseLED. Well versed in all things lighting, Phil is known to capture the interest of captivated audiences.

Learning Objectives:

• Analyze how AI-controlled lighting systems affect circadian rhythms and emotional well-being in building occupants. → HSW: Health; Topic Area: Programming and Analysis
• Evaluate the role of AI-enhanced lighting in improving visibility, responsiveness, and public safety in exterior and communal spaces. → HSW: Safety; Topic Area: Project Planning and Design
• Identify potential barriers and ethical implications of deploying AI-driven lighting systems in underserved or marginalized communities. → HSW: Welfare; Topic Area: Practice Management (Ethics)
• Assess post-occupancy outcomes of AI-integrated lighting systems to guide future design improvements. → HSW: Welfare; Topic Area: Construction and Evaluation

HSW Justification: 

This course qualifies for HSW credit as it focuses on how AI-integrated lighting systems impact the health, safety, and welfare of building occupants and the public. Topics address social well-being (Health), physical safety in public environments (Safety).