Thirsty Data, Hot Fish

A workshop on the ecological impact of data centers following fish and open-sourced ways to data sovereignty in digital, networked contexts

Data centers are crucial parts of our internet infrastructure but they are also thirsty for water, energy and land. In our workshop we will dig into the construction layers of the cloud, where they are situated and how they impact aquatic lifeforms. To understand the ecological impacts of these huge structures we will focus on fish, as they act as sensitive sensors of change to their habitats. Examples from the Danube and tributaries, as the river Enns, will lead us to a Google Data Center and what this might mean for you, me and our fish. The workshop will also give practical input on how to resist data centers, regain data sovereignty and shift to decentralized services to better assert your rights in digital, networked contexts.
Feel free to bring your laptops to help the fish cool down!