The Student Sustainability Coalition hosted a town hall April 21 to facilitate dialogue around the University of Michigan’s joint computational facility with Los Alamos National Laboratory.
The forum provided an opportunity for students to ask questions and hear from project leads, who gave progress updates and context on the university’s broader research partnership and joint initiative.
Student organizer Andrew van Baal called the event a success.
“Students have been talking about the Los Alamos project and raising concerns about the broader AI and data center development dialogue for months now,” said van Baal, a graduate student in the School for Environment and Sustainability. “I’m hopeful that the town hall closed some information and access gaps for students. We were able to get through all pre- and live-submitted audience questions and ensured the discussion followed students’ key themes of environmental sustainability, equitable community engagement, and institutional priorities and transparency.”
The potential environmental impact was a top concern, specifically regarding the planned facility’s energy and water footprint. Shana Weber, associate vice president for campus sustainability and innovation, acknowledged those concerns and noted that student input and faculty expertise will be requested and incorporated as the facility design progresses.
“These are exactly the societal challenges around the growth of AI and computing,” Weber said. “We want to be at the center of problem solving around these issues — not just for this facility but as a model for other facilities.”
U-M, Los alamos information
- U-M and Los Alamos National Laboratory are collaborating on a new supercomputing and AI research center to expand computational capacity and accelerate high-impact research for the public good.
Visit the project page on the Record site for information.
Weber explained that many design elements cannot be finalized until a specific location is chosen. “Depending on where this is sited, we will look for opportunities to actually improve the site,” she said. “We are looking forward to a time when the project is developed enough that we can start exploring what these opportunities are with the community.”
Students also asked about the facility’s research mission and the partnership with LANL. Karthik Duraisamy, professor of engineering and director of the Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering, explained that the facility will use computing for scientific discovery and provided examples of how U-M researchers are already utilizing computing and AI for life-saving breakthroughs and societal benefit.
“Computing is driving science and is transforming the kind of questions we can ask, what problems we can solve and how quickly solutions can reach the people who need it most,” Duraisamy said.
Duraisamy noted that U-M and LANL have had a longstanding collaboration on scientific research.
“This is not a new partnership; Michigan and Los Alamos have been collaborating since the founding of Los Alamos,” he said.
Duraisamy explained that records go back to 1973, and in this timespan, no other university has published more collaborative work with LANL than the University of Michigan in areas including physics, astronomy, chemistry, and atmospheric and geosciences.
Alex Wadell, a recent U-M Ph.D. graduate who worked on AI-driven discovery of battery materials for his dissertation and is currently working in AI4Science, added that such a facility would have been a significant asset to his own academic work.
“I used a lot of computing from external partners in building my molecular AI model, so having this kind of resource on campus would have been huge,” Wadell said.
Students also posed questions about U-M’s community engagement and the facility’s potential social impact on the local area. Steven Ceccio, project lead and professor of engineering, acknowledged community concerns regarding power and water rates, noise, and other local impacts.
“It’s our intent to be a good neighbor and not build a facility that would have those deleterious impacts, and I am certain we can do that,” Ceccio said.
Chris Kolb, vice president for government relations, noted that U-M regularly partners with host communities to help fund local priorities.
“We extended this offer to Ypsilanti Township and they have yet to bring any ideas for projects forward, but with the city of Ann Arbor, we do this quite extensively — from park improvements to helping with infrastructure projects,” Kolb said. “We have also invested in nonprofit organizations within Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County to address needs ranging from food insecurity to healthcare and education.”
Ceccio added that the university aims to intensify community engagement efforts. “We have been hoping to re-engage the community once we have a site selected so we can talk about the specific opportunities to partner with them.”
Sarah Mills, director of the Center for EmPowering Communities at the Graham Sustainability Institute, was asked to share her perspective on effective community engagement.
“It’s important that engagement is done early before plans are fully cooked, so that feedback can matter,” Mills said. “People want to have a say and have that incorporated into the final plans.”
Ceccio and Kolb reaffirmed that the university is planning to do additional community engagement events for both Ypsilanti Township and the internal U-M community.
Student organizers said they view the town hall as the first of many sessions intended to keep the student body informed and involved.
“The town hall provided both immediate value to students and the project team with access to better information,” van Baal said. “It will ideally serve as the foundation for more collaborative sessions and opportunities next year that are co-designed with students leading the charge.”
Sarah Probst
The comments about equitable community engagement are disingenuous. The entire community of Ypsilanti has been fighting against this data center and UM has been lying and backtracking throughout the entire process. Ann Arbor has a long history of dumping its trash in Ypsilanti. The low income city cannot afford drastic power increases from this center, and will not benefit from job creation. UM and LANL need to put this center in Ann Arbor so that the community that reaps the benefits can also deal with any potential drawbacks. The way UM and LANL has treated the community of Ypsilanti is disgusting and irredeemable.
Jill Baker
NO ONE in Ypsilanti or Ypsilanti Township wants this data center in Ypsi. Why not put it in Ann Arbor? When I asked a representative of the project at an Ypsi townhall this question, they just stared at me blankly and could not provide an answer. Neither the universtiy or DTE has been open or honest about the impacts of this facility on the environment and community.
Tiffany Green
UM: We’ve engaged the community in Ypsilanti!
Also UM: talked to ANN ARBOR students while continuing to ignore YPSILANTI residents’ concerns and repeatedly dodge questions regarding social and environmental impact, promising 200+ jobs initially then backtracking to say they’re primarily remote and will primarily be filled by non-locals
Also also UM: apparently doesn’t know the difference between two actual cities?
For real though, of course they don’t realize the different between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. Ypsilanti is just the garbage dump for them. The colonizer mindset is real.
Ryan McCarty
Still nothing in this sales pitch (or in the orchestrated student discussions, as far as I’ve heard) about the role this center will play in the maintenance of the American nuclear arsenal and the longstanding neglect that Los Alamos has shown to all communities involved in those programs. The constant trumpeting of these handful of medical applications is lipstick on a pig, plain and simple, particularly given that research is suggesting that AI applications in medicine lead to doctors themselves being less-able to effectively diagnose than they were before training with AI. https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2468-1253%2825%2900133-5
All we get is pollution, war mongering, and increased cognitive de-skilling. That doesn’t sound like what a set of public university priorities should be.
Maria Cicero
I am very curious if the Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees and/or Ypsilanti Township residents were invited to participate in this UM Student Town Hall meeting about a data center in YT. (I am an YT resident and a UM employee; I did not receive notification of this meeting.)
I trust that this article is a good representation of what was discussed at this meeting. And it feels very one-sided.
Ypsilanti Township and Ypsilanti residents have very justifiable concerns about this project that aren’t getting answered by UM and its partners. Our voices are valid. They should be included in every aspect of covering this issue.
Jill Baker
Same: UM employee and YT resident. This is the first I heard of this event.
Josh Walinsky
Same for me, as well.
Mag Grace
“We extended this offer to Ypsilanti Township and they have yet to bring any ideas for projects forward, but with the city of Ann Arbor, we do this quite extensively — from park improvements to helping with infrastructure projects,” Kolb said. “We have also invested in nonprofit organizations within Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County to address needs ranging from food insecurity to healthcare and education.”
Is the offer in the room with us? Who do you think you are, the Vogons? This isn’t the Hitchhiker’s Guide, and your terrible poetry (article) is nothing more than a propaganda piece used to make it look like you’re playing fair. In reality, the university, DTE, and Los Alamos has done everything possible to shroud this project in secrecy and push it into our community as quickly as possible. They know how bad this will be for the Ypsilanti community. They know that many communities are successfully fighting these projects. They want this done because it’s so much harder to fight once it’s there.
University of Michigan, do better. You don’t pay me enough to force me to also subsidize your government surveillance and weapons research with increased energy bills and pollution. You don’t pay me enough to even live in Ann Arbor. How dare you.
Pat Steffes
The Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees has unanimously and formally opposed building this facility anywhere near Ypsilanti Township after listening to it’s residents. Nothing less than finding a new location could be considered being a good faith neighbor at this point. Continuing to claim this project cares about community engagement is completely disingenuous and shameful.
Ypsilanti deserves better.
Emily Jablonski
I’m not surprised that no one heard about this, the first community meeting that they held in YT was not advertised either and none of my neighbors knew about it. The second one was an Elementary School Science Fair. I am frustrated that they will hold a Q&A with their students before they will hold one with the community that they want to dump this on. If they’ve collaborated with Ann Arbor before on community incentives then why don’t they collaborate with them on this as well? Why put their poorest neighbor at risk? The University just presented their Inclusive History Project, will there need to be another one in the future in regards to YT and this data center? The people of the township feel that they are being stepped on, disregarded, and taken advantage of and it’s not a good look for the University to have so little regard for a place that is low-income, high population POC, and is still suffering from the 2008 recession.
Laura Zeitlin
“I used a lot of computing from external partners in building my molecular AI model, so having this kind of resource on campus would have been huge,” Wadell said.
First Ypsilanti Township is not UM campus. It is our HOME and we have made it abundantly clear that UM is NOT trying to be a good partner, has disregarded our concerns repeatedly, refused to engage with us respectfully, lied about this every step of the way and continues to do so. We DO NOT WELCOME THIS PROJECT. If you really care about this issue, TALK TO US.
Josh Walinsky
The University of Michigan propaganda campaign is alive and well. Ypsilanti Township has made it abundantly clear we do not want this. This will harm us, not benefit us. UM is selectively ignoring what we want for our community because it will benefit them to have a conveniently placed data center, and I mean conveniently placed in our city (not their own). This will not create jobs for residents but it sure will increase our utility rates and plummet the value of our homes. Not to mention the ecological impact to our parks and wildlife, such as the eagles that live in North Hydro Park, or our water resources. Yes, in a climate crisis, let’s dramatically increase consumption of the fresh water we have here thanks to the Great Lakes for the noble purpose of nuclear weapons research, what a phenomenal idea.
Timothy Finch
UM needs to realize that this isn’t about future technologies and advancements in [insert field here], but rather optics and public opinion. Why else would UM and LANL keep trying so desperately to curb negative public opinion with town halls and slick-talking snake oil salesmen? If UM is so dedicated to this facility and collaboration, perhaps they should abandon their attempt to ruin a neighboring city (Ypsilanti) and try instead to build this facility in Ann Arbor. If it’s so important to humanity and UM and our future, as they like to claim, then perhaps it will be welcomed with open arms in Ann Arbor and not come up against a huge wave of NIMBYs. But of course we know that wouldn’t fly, so their next “best” option was to stick a good neighbor in Ypsilanti with footing the financial, environmental, and deleterious health burdens. UM should be as ashamed of itself as I am of my alma mater.
Stephanie Collier
As a staff member who lives in Ypsilanti, it gives me great comfort to know that Ann Arbor students will get to ask questions about the data center that is about to ruin our lives.
Dan Cameron
It’s great that kids who won’t be here in one month to three years get a say, while the university has done everything they can to keep Ypsilanti residents from having any input. The university’s policy of “we can’t pay staff more, so just live in Ypsi” followed up with “and now we’re going to destroy Ypsi’s infrastructure” is new levels of ridiculous.
Iris Brauer
Meanwhile this is happening in Ypsi. The people don’t want this.
https://www.404media.co/community-votes-to-deny-water-to-nuclear-weapons-data-center/
Briana Chalker
The number of propaganda articles that UM is churning out regarding this proposed data center is obscene. The comments section for every one of these articles say the same thing: Ypsi residents do not want this data center, and continue to fight against it. Here are a few reasons why we don’t want it.
1. Residents will have to pay higher electric and water bills
2. Property values will decrease
3. The air, noise, water and light pollution will destroy the community
4. The natural habitats and ecosystems will be destroyed
5. Promotion of nuclear weapons research and war profiteering via Los Alamos
6. If this project is so wonderful, then why isn’t it being built in Ann Arbor?
Carol Gagliardi
I tried attending an information meeting on January 29th at the Marriott in Ypsilanti. I registered ahead of time but when I arrived I was denied entry because I was carrying a purse. They wanted me to leave my purse with my keys and phone and wallet on the table outside the meeting room. I was flabbergasted and refused to leave my valuables unattended. How is that considered welcoming to the community?! If they treated me with such disrespect at a simple information meeting, I can’t imagine how they will treat people with real concerns.
They want the community to approve a destructive, polluting, energy and water hogging facility with no details or plans but purely on faith and trust. The idea that they will magically do the right thing for the community is laughable, if it weren’t so tragic.
Michael Hylton
“Chris Kolb, vice president for government relations, noted that U-M regularly partners with host communities to help fund local priorities.” Please give receipts for how much the university actually spends on this.
“Ceccio added that the university aims to intensify community engagement efforts.” Does community engagement efforts mean buying up more of the township’s land?
Last I checked the “local priority” seems to be keeping this data center out of the township and off its natural resources. And usually a “host” gets a say in whether the guest is welcome. Do you think Ypsi Township was given the opportunity? Residents of YT will be a victim, not a host, and no charitable write-offs will fix that. I’m a resident of Ypsi Township and working for U-M increasingly feels like working for the bad guys.
Rita Lee
“I used a lot of computing from external partners in building my molecular AI model, so having this kind of resource on campus would have been huge,” Wadell said.
This tells me a lot. Someone can advocate for its benefits being “on campus” while all the hazards and concerns are concentrated miles away in locations _U-M has proposed and asserted they have no legal restrictions on buying land anywhere in our state because they’re a state public institution_, and where none of the U-M Ann Arbor students, staff, and faculty who aren’t also Ypsilanti Township residents know. They keep doing PR control while swatting away or stepping on top of any objections and concerns from Ypsilanti Township officials and residents. If you need a location to plan around, do it _on Ann Arbor Campus_ where you apparently have a quotable alum who wants it on campus.
It’s giving extraction. It’s giving jeweler who works with blood diamonds. It’s giving “Made in the USA” because final assembly counts but all the materials and exploited labor come from the global south.
AND THEN even *if* there are world-changing discoveries, they won’t be adopted by the global south because of all the generations of people who have suffered the deep injustices to produce the thing. Look at how African nations refuse to adopt royalty free, public and philanthropic funded bio cassava plus because of its history with colonization and exploitation, and vaccine hesitancy among Americans because of how the privatized healthcare systems have abused us not just historically but even through today there is increasing medical classism, racism, ableism, transphobia, and misogyny under Trump. This is a classic case of the means NOT justifying the ends, and actively stopping us from collectively as an entire planet benefiting from the ends.
Kyle Roberts
https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/scientists-have-found-an-alarming-environmental-impact-of-vast-data-centers/ar-AA1ZL7P1?ocid=winp2fptaskbarent&cvid=dec380b9add14bedf083f7e62368f2dd&ei=23
“They found surface temperatures increased by an average of 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit after a data center started operations. In extreme cases, nearby temperatures increase by up to 16.4 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Cameron Woolley
Disingenuous propaganda. Try listening to the voices telling you “no” instead. Ypsilanti Township does not want your data center!
Marcella Beaumont
I feel very frustrated with the continued misinformation and propaganda about these data centers. If certain people feel so strongly about them being so great then put them in their communities in Ann Arbor. NO ONE in Ypsilanti wants these data centers. They will destroy the community, the natural habitats, pollute our water, create constant noise pollution, increase water and energy bills, and devalue properties of people that are fighting against them. Please listen to us and do better. Make decisions as if you yourself live in the communities you are trying to destroy!