Data centers enable many of the digital services that we see as central to modern life, from artificial intelligence (AI) applications to online financial transactions to cloud computing and video streaming. However, data centers also require significant energy and water resources, potentially straining local utility grids and municipal water supplies and contributing to rising greenhouse gas emissions. As data centers continue to expand in the United States and abroad, more research is needed to understand their potential environmental and health effects and create strategies for balancing innovation and impact. Dr. Mary D. Willis will describe the impacts of data centers built in the United States and propose policy solutions to help protect local communities.

Dr. Mary D. Willis is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the Boston University School of Public Health. Her research focuses on how the energy sector impacts the environment, local communities, and population health. She uses methods from a wide range of fields, such as epidemiology, geography, economics, and data science. Recent issues that she has examined include oil and gas development, traffic regulations, power outages, and data centers. Dr. Willis is PI of an NIH Director’s Early Independence Award that examines how oil and gas development may impact fertility and pregnancy. Dr. Willis recently led a commentary about the potential health impacts of cryptocurrency mining that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.