At some point data center developers and their political allies will figure out a formula for propagandizing about the benefits of data centers and the fight will be harder, but right now they're doing basically nothing to allay community concerns so there's a big opening.

From what I can tell, based on some data and some anecdata, is that most people are already deeply skeptical and/or opposed to enormous, noisy, water-sucking, polluting facilities with meager job-creation upsides being sited near their communities with no clear, tangible benefit.

Took about two years to disentangle my identity from my work. Don’t think that was healthy.

Coal communities have powered the country, there’s a pride in that work (even if it’s bad for the climate) and data centers… make people dumber, ruin the creative class, etc etc

Thank you so much for these recommendations, Colleen! I’ll definitely check these out. I’m glad the end of the year is nigh; definitely going to carve out some rest and reading time. And you’re right. Everything has been too much for too long…

Any tips for recovery a post-ac person who packed in too much into a time window too small, all of which was mission-driven, competitive, done under the duress of severe resource/institutional limitations, but who would like to still do impactful work if only they could have a short nap first?

Much as I love to nerd out about energy and climate, I now believe that when Dems regain power, they'd be absolutely batshit to tackle any issue other than reforming our deeply corrupted democracy and judiciary. Without that, progress on anything else will be temporary, shallow, contingent.

By “resonates with people,” I don’t mean come up with better messaging, I mean do climate work that actively and in the near term makes lives tangibly better and more equitable economically and socially.

I’m told NLR…