UPDATED: March 16, 2020

As of March 16, Building Energy Exchange will be temporarily closed to the public. Staff will be working remotely during this time and in-person programs in March and April have been postponed.

Online programs may become available in the coming weeks. See our event calendar for additional information.

We will continue to update our response to COVID-19 given recommendations by the City, State, and other relevant health organizations. For updates, please follow us on social media.

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March 9, 2020

A message to our community from the Building Energy Exchange:

As a public space, your health remains a top priority for us. Given this, we continue to actively monitor the outbreak of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus).

Following continued recommendation by the NYC Department of Health, there have been no major scheduling changes to our programming. We have, however, implemented a number of preventative measures as recommended by NYC Health, the CDC, and other relevant bodies.

All events will be live-streamed, when feasible, and a link will be made available to registrants prior to the event. For those exhibiting symptoms (fever, cough, difficulty breathing), we urge you to stream the program remotely. Refunds for ticketed events are available by request (info@be-exchange.org). In addition, we publish all event videos to our website. No food will be served for hygienic purposes. Please check our calendar for specific event updates and information.

NYC DCAS, our landlord, has committed to implementing enhanced cleaning measures in our building, including:

• Installing hand sanitizer dispensers in heavily trafficked lobbies and public areas.
• Ensuring soap and paper towels are readily available in all bathrooms.
• Heightened cleaning schedules of public spaces and sanitizing of heavily touched areas.

Following suite, we have adopted a more frequent and extensive cleaning schedule for all of our public spaces—including classroom, tech demo room, training room, and boardroom.

We urge event attendees to wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. In addition:

• Cover coughs and sneezes.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Avoid close contact with people with visible symptoms.

As a reminder, symptoms of COVID-19 include fever and symptoms of lower respiratory illness such as cough and difficulty breathing. These symptoms may be similar to the flu or the common cold. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia and other complications, especially in infants, older individuals, and those with underlying health conditions. As such, the CDC recommends those over the age of 60 and with chronic medical conditions follow social distancing measures when possible. 

We thank you all in advance for your heightened attention to these issues as we work together to ensure a comfortable, healthful, learning environment.

Additional Information
NYC Department of Health Information About Coronavirus
CDC Coronavirus Disease Page