五个值得了解的LEED认证会展中心：从纽约Javits中心到匹兹堡DLCC

Skift Take

It’s not just features that add up to LEED certification. These convention centers are known for working closely with event customers to share their meetings’ sustainability stories.

Selecting a LEED-certified event venue tells an important story about your meeting’s commitment to sustainability. That story is increasingly important, too: Skift Research shows that 24% of travelers actively seek out sustainable solutions, and they’re willing to accept trade-offs to get them. 

While LEED certification is becoming more commonplace across the industry, these five convention centers stand out from the crowd with green infrastructure and initiatives.

1. Javits Center

The location for the Skift Meetings Forum and Skift Global Forum, the LEED Gold-certified Javits North in New York City is known for its rooftop garden and greenhouse, spanning an acre and home to birds, bats, and honeybees. Through its Cultivated program, event clients can take advantage of rooftop-grown produce and greenhouse-grown herbs, microgreens, and flowers.

And another kind of farm at the building, the rooftop solar farm, allows the building to be more resilient to outages. The stored energy has been used to alleviate Con Edison’s congested network.

2. Austin Convention Center

The Austin Convention Center is undergoing a $1.6 billion redevelopment known as “Unconventional ATX” to become the world's first International Living Future Institute (ILFI) Zero Carbon-certified convention center. The all-electric facility will feature 100% renewable energy, mass timber trusses, and recycled materials.

The facility plans to officially reopen in time for the South by Southwest (SXSW) 2029 festival season.

3. Seattle Convention Center Summit

Rather than sprawling horizontally as most centers do, the Summit, North America’s first high-rise convention center, is stacked vertically. The building stores up to 400,000 gallons of stormwater in cisterns for flushing and irrigation, cutting indoor potable water use by more than 50%. Additional highlights include its suspended timber lattice ceiling made of reclaimed wood; one of the largest window shade systems in the world with both room-darkening and light-filtering functions; and “Mowitch Man,” a large wooden statue that traditionally welcomes visitors to tribal territories, created by a member of the Squaxin Island Tribe.

4. Moscone Center

San Francisco’s Moscone Center, the first in the U.S. to achieve LEED Platinum certification, is known for working with high-profile citywide events like Salesforce Dreamforce on sustainability outcomes. It also claims to have the lowest carbon emissions per delegate of any major convention center in North America.

Planners can expect 75% waste diversion , mandatory composting and recycling systems, and detailed post-event impact reporting. The building’s sustainability features include a green roof that provides insulation and reduces stormwater runoff, a massive solar array that generates substantial clean energy, and water reclamation systems throughout the facility.

5. David L. Lawrence Convention Center

TThe David L. Lawrence Convention Center (DLCC) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was the world’s largest green building and the first LEED-certified convention center when it opened in 2003. Architect Rafael Viñoly integrated sustainability into the design, and and the venue has worked to maintain a leading-edge approach to caring for the planet. In 2012, the DLCC earned a second LEED certification for operational sustainability.

Among its highlights: More than 75% of the entire building can be naturally lit, and the primary exhibit hall space of 236,000 square feet can be 100% naturally lit by skylights and glass walls. The building is also designed with a natural ventilation system, which allows fresh air to cool its convention halls. 

Search the full list of LEED-certified buildings for convention centers here, and find more tips for creating a sustainable meeting here.