AI: Energy, Environment & Community
2026
2026
2026, Climate + Environment
AI is changing how we live and work. But what does it take to power it? Are you paying the price?
Every time we pose a question to a chatbot, generate a synthetic image or use an AI-powered tool, we're relying on physical infrastructure that most of us never see. Behind the technology are massive data centres that require significant amounts of electricity, water and land to operate.
As Canada invests billions in expanding its AI infrastructure in communities across the country, the consequences could reach far beyond the tech industry. There are questions that affect all of us, whether we're using AI at work, paying household bills or thinking about the future of our communities. Could growing electricity demand affect household energy bills? What happens when data centres compete with communities for water and energy resources? Will these developments create lasting local jobs, or will the economic benefits primarily flow elsewhere? And what does this expansion mean for Canada's climate commitments?
Join Paris Marx (Tech Won't Save Us, Hyperscale), Sean Mullin (Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy), Kate Harland (Canadian Climate Institute) and Jeff Ward (Animikii Indigenous Technology), with moderator Isaac Phan Nay (The Tyee), for a timely discussion about the environmental trade-offs, community impacts and potential opportunities associated with Canada's growing AI data centre build-out.
The in-person audience will have the chance to bring their questions to the panel, and together we'll explore who benefits, who bears the costs and what it would take for communities to have a meaningful say in how this infrastructure is developed.
Iron Dog Books will also be on-site selling Paris Marx’s new book Hyperscale: The Ambition and Excess of Big Tech’s Data Empires.Can’t attend in person? You can register for a free livestream ticket.
This event is co-presented with support from The Tyee, SFU Climate Innovation, the Dialogue on Technology Project and the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS).
Header Image: Kathryn Conrad & Rose Willis / Better Images of AI / CC BY 4.0
Doors: 6:30 pm
Event: 7:00-8:30 pm
Location:
The Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema
SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts
149 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 1H4
Tickets:
Indigenous, Student & Senior Ticket: $5.00
General Admission: $10.00
On this page
Paris Marx
Paris Marx is a Canadian tech critic and host of the acclaimed Tech Won’t Save Us podcast. He speaks around the world about the politics of technology and writes the Disconnect newsletter. Paris is the author of Hyperscale: The Ambition and Excess of Big Tech’s Data Empires.
Sean Mullin
Sean Mullin is an economist and policy leader with over 20 years of experience in technology, economic strategy, and public policy.
As a Senior Fellow at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, his work focuses on AI, sovereignty, and economic competitiveness.
He previously served as Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada for Economic Affairs, where he led the development of Canada’s Sovereign AI Compute Strategy and contributed to major economic initiatives. He also founded the Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship and co-authored Sovereign by Design: Strategic Options for Canadian AI Sovereignty in 2026.
He holds an MBA from Oxford, an MA in Economics from McGill, and an Honours BSc from the University of Toronto.
Kate Harland
Kate Harland is the Director for Clean Growth at the Canadian Climate Institute. At the Institute, she has led pivotal projects on electricity and economic competitiveness, energy affordability and managing peak electricity demand.
She also served as an external energy advisor to the BC Hydro Task Force. With over 15 years of climate and policy experience spanning three continents, Kate brings a breadth of expertise to her work. Her previous roles include contributing to climate policy and economic analysis for the UK and EU governments and developing low-carbon vehicle strategies with Nissan.
She also served as Research Lead for the Chief Science Advisor to the New Zealand Prime Minister, covering both climate change and research and innovation policy. Kate holds a Master of Science from Cambridge University and a Master of Public Policy from Simon Fraser University.
Jeff Ward
Jeff Ward is the founder and CEO of Animikii Indigenous Technology, a values-driven B Corp building ethical technology for a more equitable world. Since 2003, Jeff has grown Animikii into the company behind Niiwin, one of the world's first data platforms built with Indigenous-first design. Niiwin empowers organizations to control and use their data to benefit their communities, grounded in Indigenous data sovereignty principles like OCAP® and CARE.
Jeff is Ojibwe and Métis, originally from Manitoba, now living and working in Victoria, BC on Lekwungen territory. He's a software developer, product designer, author, and speaker.
He has served on the board of Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) and its subsidiaries since 2018 and is a founding board member of the Indigenous Tech Circle. He also serves on the OECD Global Partnership on AI (GPAI) Experts Working Group on Responsible AI and is a Fellowship Leadership Judge for MIT Solve.
Jeff speaks and presents regularly at national and international conferences and is quoted widely in the media.
Isaac Phan Nay
Isaac Phan Nay is reporter at The Tyee, where he covers labour and corporate responsibility. He previously worked at Canada's National Observer, the Toronto Star and CBC Vancouver, and has extensively covered business, labour and the environment.
