DC’s ‘Connected Campus’ Extends Spaces for New Event Experiences

A Sponsored Message from Destination DC


DC’s Connected Campus initiative helps planners create non-traditional spaces to create events that expand their footprint outside the walls of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center (WEWCC).

DC’s Connected Campus initiative helps planners create non-traditional spaces to create events that expand their footprint outside the walls of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center (WEWCC).

Consider the last business event you attended. What did you see? Conference rooms with four walls? Check. Folding tables with water? Check. Lines of chairs and a podium? Check and check.

In DC, proponents of the city’s Connected Campus initiative think event planners and participants are ready for something new. Connected Campus shows planners how to create “meetings with movement” that use non-traditional DC spaces to plan events that expand the footprint of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center (WEWCC). With a diversified meeting layout, planners can invite participants outside of the traditional four-wall event experience and into authentic spaces in DC’s convention center district.

Several distinct DC venues offer bookable meeting and event spaces to accommodate groups of all sizes right in the heart of Washington. Varying in size from intimate galleries to large scale arenas, these spaces can be mixed and matched and customized to suit the needs of any organization, creating activated spaces for individual exhibitors or sponsors. Plus, all are under a 10 minute walk from the convention center, including:

  • Long View Gallery (1 min to WEWCC) — an intimate art venue featuring work by mainly local artists.
  • Present Company Public House (8 mins to WEWCC) — a casual neighborhood pub built within DC’s oldest firehouse.
  • Capital One Arena (9 mins to WEWCC) — a thriving sports complex, home to the Washington Capitals NHL and Washington Wizards NBA teams.

In addition to moving participants outside the convention center, Connected Campus aids planners in adapting events to existing COVID-19 protocols. Layouts provide additional spaces to accommodate for social distancing and allow for larger meetings to be broken into small groups.

To learn more about DC’s Connected Campus and how you can invite your event participants to see more of the city, visit https://washington.org/meetings/connected-campus.

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