If you looked carefully at business cards you received from ASTC staff at conference, you may have noticed a new mailing address. That’s right: the ASTC office is moving to a new space in Washington, D.C. This move Is more than just a new place to get our mail, but an opportunity for the association to live our values.
A Net Zero home
Our new office is located in the American Geophysical Union (AGU) building, the first Net Zero renovated building in Washington, D.C. That means that the amount of energy used by the building annually is less than or equal to the amount of energy created onsite, including through innovative technologies and renewable power generation. The building has received LEED Platinum, Energy Star, and WELL certification. And the building has a culture of recycling, composting, and using sustainable materials.
Our staff had the opportunity to tour the building earlier this year, and we are blown away by all of the ways that this facility takes advantage of the engineering principles of reduction, reclamation, absorption, and generation. You can learn more about the many sustainable features that reduce the use of energy and water on the AGU website.
Joining with a partner
We are pleased to be able to share space with AGU, a global community supporting more than half a million advocates and professionals in the Earth and space sciences. ASTC already partners with AGU on a number of projects, especially our Community Science Initiative, including the ASTC–Thriving Earth Community Science Fellowship Program.
We know that our physical proximity to AGU and to other partners in the scientific community will continue to strengthen our partnerships and opportunities for collaboration.
An opportunity to convene
Our new office space provides amazing opportunities for ASTC to serve as a convener, both in-person and virtually. Whether it’s bringing our staff together, meeting with partners, or convening coalitions and workshops, our new home provides ASTC with access to a wide range of meeting rooms, including AGU’s Conference Center.
The move
Consistent with our values, ASTC is working to minimize the planetary health impact of our move. We’re minimizing what we move and donating, upcycling, and recycling materials we’re not taking with us. For example, we have donated office furniture, supplies, and materials for artwork to other organizations and to a number of local schools; offered unneeded electronics to partners and other local nonprofits; shared extra copies of publications with authors, educational institutions, and other partners; and distributed kitchenware and other supplies to help equip migrants moving to the area. And for anything left, we’re working with a decommissioning firm that is committed to repurposing and redistributing materials to keep them out of the landfill.
We look forward to hosting you when you’re in DC, but in the meantime, please send all correspondence to us at our new address as of Monday, November 6:
Association of Science and Technology Centers
2000 Florida Avenue, NW
Suite 300
Washington, DC 20009
Our phone number (+1 202-783-7200), website (www.astc.org), and email addresses (@astc.org) will remain the same.