DC and its surrounding suburbs are home to more than 1.1 million “knowledge workers,” people whose jobs require them to use, analyze and develop ideas and information. What does that mean for meeting planners? It means that the DC metro area is a great place to seek out compelling speakers and programming topics—and a built-in, interested population that can help boost attendance and increase awareness of your organization.

BIOTECH

The DC metropolitan area is a thriving hub for biotechnology, home to the third-highest number of bioscience companies in the world and a major center of human genome research. World-renowned healthcare and research facilities like the National Institutes of Health and the US Food & Drug Administration are headquartered here, along with many top medical associations and major biotech companies like MedImmune, Martek and Digene. The region’s bioscience workforce employs 19,000 public-sector and 14,000 private-sector workers, a number that has increased by 5% since 2003. More than 50 world-class universities, federal laboratories, bioscience companies and nonprofit research facilities attract students and researchers to the metropolitan area.

From research and development to testing and regulation, biotechnology is big business for DC. It’s also big business for DC’s hospitality industry and the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, which has successfully hosted gatherings of some of the most prestigious groups in the industry, including the Biotechnology Industry Organization and the American Society for Microbiology.

“The personnel were extremely courteous, pleasant, knowledgeable and very helpful and were able to work with our computer system very easily. We look forward to working with your staff again…when we return to Washington, DC”
-Pauline Minhinnett, Experimental Biology (2007)

HIGH-TECH

Metro Washington’s unique combination of private companies, government agencies, and professional associations make it one of the nation’s top centers for information technology. Leading names in technology and communications like Sprint-Nextel, Qwest and America Online claim the DC area as their home base. The region’s IT workforce now tops 330,000 and continues to grow, with more computer engineers than any other major US metropolitan area and six times the national average of computer scientists. Financial support for the IT industry is partially fueled by the nearly $27 billion in federal government spending on IT products and services.

With so much high-tech industry in its own backyard, it’s no surprise that the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and DC’s other meeting and convention facilities are well-equipped to handle the requirements of major tech-focused conventions and smaller corporate gatherings. Contact Destination DC to learn more.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

It’s no surprise that DC hosts its share of government meetings and events. The federal government employs more than 2.7 million workers across the country, and 16% (or 432,000) reside in the Greater Washington metropolitan region. They’re Hill staffers, policy analysts, Census statisticians and employees at all levels of federal agencies like the Department of State, Department of Health and Human Services and the IRS. Thousands more work as contractors, providing technical services and support to government agencies, and lobbyists, eager to influence opinions on Capitol Hill.

The federal government is a driving force – and a leading spender – in the DC economy, including its hospitality industry. DC’s hotels, restaurants and meeting facilities play host to grand events like presidential inaugurations as well as small-scale summits and symposia. Convention and conference services managers understand the unique needs and concerns of government planners and are eager to help events run smoothly and efficiently.

GREEN

DC takes its commitment to environmental responsibly quite seriously. It’s a fitting way of doing business in a region that’s home to the National Park Service, National Geographic Society, the Environmental Protection Agency – plus more than 250,000 acres of parkland. DC was the first major city in the US to require developers to abide by green building guidelines, a policy that’s even impacting the new Nationals Park, which is aiming to be the first green-certified ballpark in the US.

Meeting planners find one of the country’s greenest meeting facilities in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, which is outfitted with features like low emission glass that controls heat gain and loss and maximizes natural lighting; energy-conserving heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems that operate in zones; high-efficiency lighting; automatic controls on restroom fixtures; plus recycling programs and direct access to public transportation.

Hotels and restaurants are also stepping up, purchasing wind credits for energy, boosting recycling programs and supporting local, sustainable agriculture.

Eco-minded associations are paying attention, choosing DC as the host location for events and gatherings like the American Council on Renewable Energy’s annual convention and the annual Green Festival at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

For more information on DC’s green efforts, explore DC’s green experience here.

INTERNATIONAL

A leading world capital, DC boasts a distinctively international flavor, evident in the collection of more than 170 foreign embassies, residences, chanceries and diplomatic missions located in the northwest quadrant of the city.

High-profile international organizations like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank are also headquartered here, along with leading international news bureaus, more than 400 international associations and 700 internationally owned companies. Area colleges and universities hosted about 19,000 international students in 2005.

With so many international influences at play, it’s no surprise to discover that DC residents are well-traveled and globally aware, voted “most worldly” in Travel + Leisure’s 2007 “America’s Favorite Cities” poll. Fifteen percent of DC residents and 20% of the region’s residents speak a language other than English at home, and the city’s dining and nightlife scenes span the globe, from high-end Asian cuisine to casual African fare to Brit Pop dance nights.

DC’s is also a hotspot for international travel, with direct flight service to approximately 30 international locations, including new routes to Beijing, China and major cities in Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. Meeting planners are discovering that DC’s appeal, easy access, and the favorable exchange rate have led to an uptick in international delegate counts. More than 40% of the nearly 25,000 delegates who attended Digestive Disease Week in 2007 came from outside of the US.

Click here to learn more about the international experience in DC.

TESTIMONIALS

You all are truly the friendliest people I have ever met. [WCTC staff] had to put up with quite a lot and yet there were always smiles on their faces, it was amazing!
-Lindsay Goneau, American Academy of Thoracic Surgeons (2007)

WCTC staff helped to deliver an efficiently executed meeting. We were impressed with the professionalism of the staff and their dedication in responding to our needs. They very quickly became an extension of our own staff.
-Anna Keller, American Public Health Association (2007)