National Building Museum

Events & Online Programming

The Museum looks forward to resuming in-person public programs when we are able to. Until then, we are producing smart, timely, and thought-provoking presentations and panel discussions that can be enjoyed online: first live, via webinar, and then after, as recorded videos. Select live programs will offer the opportunity to earn continuing education credits; at this time, recorded programs are not eligible for such credits. Use this page to find out what we’re planning and what is available for viewing.

The Museum has three signature program series: Climate ABC, Equity in the Built Environment, and Spotlight on Design. We also have the Architecture and Design Film Festival, and the Scully Prize and the Honor Award.

Upcoming Programs

  • Climate ABC: Urban Sequoia June 28, 2022 FREE Museum Member and Student / $15 Non-member
    • Climate ABC
    • Upcoming Programs

    Register Here

    Learn about Urban Sequoia, an innovative concept that asks what if buildings could act like trees—capturing carbon, purifying the air, and regenerating the environment? Taking inspiration from natural processes and ecosystems, Urban Sequoia envisions “forests” of buildings that create a new carbon-removal economy and a resilient future for cities. Yasemin Kologlu, design director, SOM; Christopher Neidl, co-founder, OpenAir; and Wil V. Srubar III, PhD, associate professor, University of Colorado Boulder, founder and managing director, Aureus Earth, discuss this concept and the central proposition that the built environment can become a solution to climate change—radically rethinking how buildings and cities are designed and constructed to absorb carbon. The program is moderated by Chris Cooper, FAIA, LEED AP, design director, SOM.

    This program is presented as part of the Museum’s Climate ABC series. Climate ABC (Action/Building/Community) focuses on three essential aspects to addressing climate change: Actions by individuals, businesses, non-profits, policy makers, and civic entities; Building — examples of both physical structures and landscapes, as well as coalitions of stakeholders; and Communities at every scale that are working to slow climate change.

    This program will be presented live via Zoom. Once you complete your ticket purchase, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing the link to attend the webinar.

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  • Creating the Playhouse July 18, 2022 $10 Museum Member / FREE Student / $15 Non-member
    • Museum Exhibitions & More
    • Upcoming Programs

    Register

    In-Person Program

    Learn about the National Building Museum’s latest iteration of its Summer Block Party The Playhouse, presented with Folger Shakespeare Library, in association with the University of South Carolina. Aileen Fuchs, Museum president and executive director, and Karen Ann Daniels, Folger Theatre artistic director, lead a lively conversation about the creation and activation of the Festival Stage within the Museum’s Great Hall, while Jim Hunter, stage developer, offers insight into the unique challenges and exciting opportunities afforded by the project. This program takes place on the Festival Stage, the centerpiece of the Museum’s Summer Block Party The Playhouse, and will be followed by a public reception.

    Please note: online ticket sales end at midnight on July 17. Availability permitting, tickets can be purchased day-of at the door.

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  • AECOM July 25, 2022 $10 Museum Member | Free Student | $15 Non-member
    • Spotlight on Design
    • Upcoming Programs

    REGISTER

    In-person and Live Broadcast

    Understand how the recently completed Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge in Washington DC is more than just a physical way for people to cross the Anacostia River. Panelists discuss how the bridge will also bridge a social/economic divide and provide important, equitable, and lasting connections between two wards of the capital city.

    This program will be held in-person at the National Building Museum as well as live streamed via Zoom Webinar. Upon completion of your payment here, you will receive a confirmation with instructions on how to register for the Zoom event. .

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  • NBM Late Night: Frontera Performance August 1, 2022 $10 Member/ $5 Student / $25 Non-member
    • Museum Exhibitions & More
    • Upcoming Programs

    Visit the Museum after hours to explore our exhibitions, including The Wall/El Muro: What is a Border Wall? before diving deep into life at the border with The Frontera Project – an interactive, bilingual theater event created by a company of Mexican and US artists who use music, movement and play to engage audiences in a compassionate, often joyous conversation about life at the US/Mexico Border. Specifically focused on Tijuana/San Diego, they will explore the varied lives of people on both sides of the Border – for audiences who may never have been there themselves. Their mission is to create the possibility for recognition across difference – of perspective, identity – and spark a dialogue about what divides us, and what we share. After the show, stick around for post-performance conversation!

    Visite el Museo durante nuestro programa después de horas para explorar exposicíones, incluyendo The Wall/El Muro: What is a Border Wall? antes de sumergirse en la vida en la frontera con The Frontera Project – una evento teatral interactiva y bilingüe, que incopora además la música y el juego para involucrar activamente al público en una conversación integral sobre la vida en la frontera México/Estados Unidos, más allá de la situación política y la realidad mostrada en los medios de comunicación. De esta manera, más que contar una sola historia, se construye un mosaico de pequeñas anécdotas (personales y ficcionadas) que celebran la riqueza y las contradicciones de la vida fronteriza, particularmente en las ciudades de Tijuana/San Diego, recreando experiencias diversas de personas en ambos lados de la frontera para públicos que quizá nunca han estado ahí. El tema es la Frontera, pero el objetivo del proyecto es crear la posibilidad de reconocernos en las diferencias: de perspectiva, identidad o experiencia, para lograr una conexión que realmente signifique cruzar una frontera. Es por ello que la obra busca llegar a públicos familiares para abrir la posibilidad de diálogo sobre lo que implican las fronteras en el mundo actual. Lo invitamos a quedarse después de la experencia interactiva para una conversacion con los creativos de The Frontera Project.

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  • Spotlight on Design: Folger Shakespeare Library Renovation August 8, 2022 $10 Museum and FSL Members / FREE Students / $15 Non-member
    • Museum Exhibitions & More
    • Spotlight on Design
    • Upcoming Programs

    Learn about the renovation of Washington DC’s Folger Shakespeare Library, designed by Paul Cret in 1932. Michael Witmore, Library director, and Stephen Kieran, FAIA, LEED Fellow, partner, KieranTimberlake, explore how a historically listed 1930s building can become a more fully accessible cultural hub for the 21st century. Enhancements include new entry plazas and gardens, permanent and temporary exhibitions, study rooms for researchers, and an Education Laboratory.

    The National Building Museum and the Folger Shakespeare Library, in association with the University of South Carolina, are partnering this summer to present The Playhouse. Starting on Friday, July 1–and running through August 28, 2022–visitors can step back in time with the Bard for the latest iteration of the Museum’s Summer Block Party.

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Previous Programs

  • Climate ABC: Urban Sequoia June 28, 2022 FREE Museum Member and Student / $15 Non-member
    • Climate ABC
    • Upcoming Programs

    Register Here

    Learn about Urban Sequoia, an innovative concept that asks what if buildings could act like trees—capturing carbon, purifying the air, and regenerating the environment? Taking inspiration from natural processes and ecosystems, Urban Sequoia envisions “forests” of buildings that create a new carbon-removal economy and a resilient future for cities. Yasemin Kologlu, design director, SOM; Christopher Neidl, co-founder, OpenAir; and Wil V. Srubar III, PhD, associate professor, University of Colorado Boulder, founder and managing director, Aureus Earth, discuss this concept and the central proposition that the built environment can become a solution to climate change—radically rethinking how buildings and cities are designed and constructed to absorb carbon. The program is moderated by Chris Cooper, FAIA, LEED AP, design director, SOM.

    This program is presented as part of the Museum’s Climate ABC series. Climate ABC (Action/Building/Community) focuses on three essential aspects to addressing climate change: Actions by individuals, businesses, non-profits, policy makers, and civic entities; Building — examples of both physical structures and landscapes, as well as coalitions of stakeholders; and Communities at every scale that are working to slow climate change.

    This program will be presented live via Zoom. Once you complete your ticket purchase, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing the link to attend the webinar.

    Read More +
  • 2022 Honor Award June 16, 2022
    • Awards
    • Upcoming Programs

    The National Building Museum will present its 2022 Honor Award to global built environment consulting firm Arup. The Museum recognizes Arup as the 35th recipient of this award for its seven decades of collaboration and creativity dedicated to shaping a better world through the built environment.

    Arup will receive the Honor Award during the Museum’s Gala on June 16. That evening, the Museum will also unveil its new Institutional Pillars, which provide a vision for impact and focus for its work. These four Pillars: Equity, Environment, Innovation and Wonder, now guide the organization.

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  • Climate ABC: From Ideas to Action June 1, 2022 FREE Museum Member and Student / $15 Non-member
    • Climate ABC
    • Upcoming Programs

    Register Here

    Explore how the power of digital technology, nature-based solutions, and community empowerment can move sustainable development from concept to action. At the intersection of the three main crises of social justice, climate change, and the resiliency of the earth’s increasingly fragile ecosystems we ask, “What is the role of the built environment in tackling these issues?” How can we enable, empower, incentivize, and inspire change? Fiona Cousins, Americas Region Chair, Arup, and others tackle these questions in a discussion moderated by Robert Kay, Climate Services and Sustainability Leader, Arup.

    The National Building Museum will present its 2022 Honor Award to global built environment consulting firm Arup. As the 35th recipient of the award, the Museum recognizes Arup’s seven decades of collaboration and creativity dedicated to shaping a better world through the built environment.

    This program is presented as part of the Museum’s Climate ABC series. Climate ABC (Action/Building/Community) focuses on three essential aspects to addressing climate change: Actions by individuals, businesses, non-profits, policy makers, and civic entities; Building — examples of both physical structures and landscapes, as well as coalitions of stakeholders; and Communities at every scale that are working to slow climate change.

    This program will be presented live via Zoom. Once you complete your ticket purchase, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing the link to attend the webinar.

    CABC Sponsor Graphic 3.4.22

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  • Video
    Where is My Land? May 18, 2022 Free
    • Equity in the Built Environment
    • Upcoming Programs

    Learn how the nonprofit organization Where Is My Land? works to return stolen land to Black Americans. Kavon Ward, spoken word artist, activist, reparative justice consultant, and co-founder of Where Is My Land? shares the story in successfully returning Bruce’s Beach to the Bruce family of Manhattan Beach, California.

    This program continues the National Building Museum’s Equity in the Built Environment series of conversations that focus on how buildings, landscapes, interiors, and streets can be the cause of—and, more important, the cure for—social and racial disparities.

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  • Video
    Black Women Build - Baltimore April 13, 2022
    • Equity in the Built Environment

    Learn about Black Women Build – Baltimore (BWBB), a home ownership and wealth building initiative.

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  • Video
    Climate ABC: Raising the Green Bar March 28, 2022
    • Climate ABC
    • Upcoming Programs

    Marshall Andrews, project manager, DPR Construction; Ryan Poole, global sustainability leader, DPR Construction; and Stet Sanborn, AIA, principal, SmithGroup, discuss how working with local governments can lead to positive outcomes that address climate change, as demonstrated in DPR Construction’s Sacramento office. The program is moderated by architect Susan Piedmont-Palladino, director of Virginia Tech’s Washington Alexandria Architecture Center.

    Climate ABC (Action/Building/Community) is a new signature series focusing on three essential aspects to addressing climate change: Actions by individuals, businesses, non-profits, policy makers, and civic entities; Building — examples of both physical structures and landscapes, as well as coalitions of stakeholders; and Communities at every scale that are working to slow climate change.

    This program qualifies for 1.5 LU/HSW (AIA), 1.5 PDH (LA CES/ASLA)

    closed captioning is available for this program

    CABC Sponsors_1.18 v2.jpg

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