Woodwell Climate Research Center
The Woods Hole Research Center addresses pressing environmental issues, including climate change, through scientific and policy initiatives. The Center has projects in the Amazon, the Arctic, Africa, Russia, Alaska, Canada, New England, and the Mid-Atlantic, working in collaboration with a wide variety of partners ranging from NGOs to governments and the United Nations.
The Woods Hole Research Center was established in 1985 in Woods Hole, Massachusetts by Dr. George M. Woodwell. In 2005, Dr. John P. Holdren became the director. Currently, the organization has about 45 staff members.
The Center’s main facility, located in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, was completed in 2003. The 19,300 sq ft building is composed of an older (ca. 1874) now fully renovated building, formerly used as a summer home, and a new wing. The building is noted for its high energy performance and burns no fossil fuels onsite in the operation of the building. It uses about 25% the energy of a conventionally constructed building of its size, and is run, in part, by photovoltaics, solar hot water, and a ground source heat pump. Extensive details of meteorological conditions, energy use, and building performance (real-time and historic) are available at the WHRC web site. The building was designed by noted "green" architectural firm, William McDonough + Partnersof Charlottesville, Virginia. Marc Rosenbaum of Energysmiths was the energy systems engineer. The building was constructed by the firm of T.R. White.