Data Center Complexity Visualization Project

(In Progress)

This work is in development with Matthew Wizinsky, Yajun Dai, Samuel Sav, Huy Dung Lou, and Katherine Cafaro.

Abstract

The project examines data centers through three interrelated layers:

• People Layer: Who are the stakeholders in the data center ecosystem? What are their relationships, motivations, and jurisdictions of influence?
• Infrastructure Layer: What urban infrastructures (e.g., water, energy, utilities) are required to support data centers, and how are these systems connected?
• Governance Layer: What are the planning and community considerations—social, environmental, tax, land use, future of work—when a data center comes to town? What does the local approval process look like, and how can we estimate community impacts?

Keywords: data center; community impacts; inforgraphics