On August 2, 2012, Dominic Marcellino, Fellow at Ecologic Institute DC, spoke at the "Net-Zero House Symposium", where he presented research results regarding the energy efficiency of buildings. The Net-Zero House Symposium in DC was a half-day discussion event on the building and promotion of net-zero and highly energy efficient buildings.

In total, three speakers presented the current research work of their respective organizations in building energy efficiency. Dominic Marcellino focused on the need to better integrate: research and insights about how people approach home energy use into the operation of low-energy buildings; lessons from cross-cultural research on energy use; as well as having a discussion about energy sufficiency, and not simply energy efficiency. Apart from Marcellino, the panelists were Jayson Antonoff, the U.S. Director of The Global Buildings Performance Network, and Amy Gardner, Associate Professor at the University of Maryland. The panel was moderated by Professor Ralph Belton of the University DC (UDC). Following comments from the three panelists, they engaged in a discussion with the audience.

Dr. Sabine O’Hara, Dean of the College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability & Environmental Sciences at the UDC offered opening remarks, which were followed by a Keynote address from Ronald Risser, the Program Manager of the Buildings Technologies Program at the U.S. Department of Energy. The Symposium then featured two segments: the first were a series of presentations from industrial and business participants in the building energy efficiency space, the second segment was the panel discussion mentioned above.

The Net-Zero House Symposium was hosted by the German American Chamber of Commerce and the University of the District of Columbia (UDC). The event was accompanied by the presentation of "Das Haus" on the UDC campus, a traveling pavilion which promotes energy efficient buildings. It is sponsored by the German government and the German American Chamber of Commerce and has been touring North America since October 2011.