EWTN/the Catholic News Agency examines the intersection of Pope Leo XIV’s recently released encyclical Magnifica Humanitas and the rapid data center expansion underway across the United States. The encyclical calls for AI development that preserves human dignity, safeguards natural resources, and avoids concentrating power in the hands of a few. DataBank is among the industry voices featured in the piece.
Judith McGill, DataBank’s Vice President of Strategic Marketing and a practicing Catholic, directly addresses two of the most common criticisms leveled at data centers. On employment, she notes that while data center facilities may not employ large numbers of workers directly, others, such as customers’ employees, work at the facilities as well. Plus, the services they power benefit the employees of thousands of customer organizations. She also points out that government incentives would not exist if investments were not a net economic benefit to local communities.
“What we are doing toward responsible behavior, toward human beings, and toward the environment is absolutely in line with the pope’s encyclical.”
— Judith McGill, VP of Strategic Marketing, DataBank
On the environment, McGill acknowledges power consumption as a legitimate concern while pushing back on portrayals of the industry as a monolithic bad actor. DataBank designs its facilities with closed-loop water cooling systems that continuously recycle water, is experimenting with hydrogenated vegetable oil for backup power, and aligns its practices with OECD guidelines for multinational enterprises.
McGill closes with a personal statement that speaks directly to the publication’s audience: “My conscience is clear. This is an industry that is not just avoiding doing bad things but actively seeking out ways to do the right thing.”
Read the full article at EWTN News.
