[Commlist] new book: Data Centre Entanglements: Geopolitics, Vulnerabilities, Sustainability, Activisms

New Book
Data Centre Entanglements: Geopolitics, Vulnerabilities, Sustainability, 
Activisms
Pradip Ninan Thomas
https://academic.oup.com/book/63023
https://doi.org/10.1093/9780197909331.001.0001

Abstract
Data centres are involved in the sorting, sifting, storage, aggregation, 
and monetisation of all transactional data that is absolutely critical 
to data capitalism. Data centres are fundamentally resource-intensive 
and deploy extractive technologies that consume vast amounts of 
energy—in particular water and power. This book deals with the external 
challenges faced by data centres, in particular their geopolitics, 
including contemporary struggles between China and the US to become the 
world’s data hegemon, supply chain issues related to critical minerals 
and semiconductors, and internal issues including that of data centre 
sustainability. This latter issue is particularly acute in countries in 
both the Global North and South that are facing significant water and 
power stresses. The special relationship that data centres, in 
particular hyperscale data centres owned by Big Tech, have with the 
state is reflected in the migration of public data, even defence data to 
privately owned data centres. This book deals with this special 
relationship with the state in the context of data localisation, data 
sovereignty, risk, the politics of greening and renewable energy, and 
the incentives offered, including access to subsidised land, tax breaks, 
and unrestricted labour supply. The impact of data centres on the 
environment has been the basis for many data activisms in Dublin, West 
Virginia, Santiago, and Amsterdam and the book includes a chapter on 
such contentious actions. The book concludes with a chapter on the 
democratisation of data centres and makes a case for diversity in data 
centre ownership, including community-based ownership.

Online ISBN:
9780197909331
Print ISBN:
9780197909348
Publisher:
Oxford University Press





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