Gabe Schwartzman, assistant professor of human geography in the College of Arts and Sciences, is a co-principal investigator of a project funded through a $1 million Alfred P. Sloan Foundation grant. The three-year collaborative research project will track and monitor the development of data centers in Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia and their impact on rural communities. The southern United States has become the fastest-growing part of the country for the development of the centers, which manage data for cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and cryptocurrency.
The project will study how utilities such as the Tennessee Valley Authority respond to increased energy demand and the social implications of new energy infrastructure. By comparing their findings across states, the researchers aim to understand how different policies, regulations, and utility systems shape both the development of data centers and the effects they have on systems and communities.
As part of the study, the team will respond to community needs by reporting on the energy demands of data centers for specific communities so residents can understand how the new developments affect their utility rates.