The debate surrounding data centers has captivated stakeholders from federal policymakers to local communities. Unfortunately, amid the escalating discourse, concrete solutions and productive pathways are often obscured by public apprehension and “Not in My Backyard” (NIMBY) opposition.
What is undeniable is the exponential growth in demand for data center capacity. One estimate projects short-term demand to increase by 17% annually between 2025 and 2028. Another forecast suggests that by 2035, data center energy demand will surge by a factor of thirty, reaching an astonishing 123 GW.
To secure a meaningful “license to operate” and pave the way for future community-supported development, the data center industry and its beneficiaries must proactively address four critical challenges: power, permits, politics, and people.
Solving the surging data center demand – one of the defining infrastructure challenges of our time – requires something the sector needs to invest more in: the “missing middle”, or better-resourced, more sophisticated industry associations capable of bridging the gap between developers, tech tenants, policymakers, and communities