LOS ALTOS, CA

The headquarters for The David and Lucile Packard Foundation in Los Altos, California brings staff, grantees and partners together to solve the world’s most intractable problems. Passive, bioclimatic design strategies support the core philanthropic mission while serving as the basis of LEED Platinum building certification and Net Zero Energy performance. The Packard Foundation’s connection to the Los Altos community dates back to its inception in 1964. For the two decades, as the Foundation’s grant making programs expanded locally and around the world, staff and operations have been scattered in buildings throughout the town. This project enhances proximity and collaboration while renewing the Foundation’s commitment to their local community by investing in a downtown project intended to last through the end of 21st century. The project’s focus on sustainability brings their facilities into alignment with their core work of conserving and restoring the Earth’s natural systems. Their new home, the largest Net Zero Energy office building in California, is the cornerstone of their effort to demonstrate how an organization can improve its effectiveness and the quality of life for its employees while emitting carbon at the rate needed to keep global temperature rise below 2°C.