Big Tech companies often frame data centers as symbols of progress and digital development. In Latin America, however, their expansion reveals a pattern of territorial violence, environmental harm, and systematic disregard for community and Indigenous rights.

This talk examines cases from Brazil and the region to show how hyperscale data centers consume massive amounts of energy and water while advancing through weakened environmental licensing, regulatory shortcuts, and limited public participation. Despite their scale, these projects are frequently approved without robust impact assessments or respect for the right to prior consultation.

The talk argues that data center expansion is a political issue. By leveraging narratives of innovation, platform companies externalize environmental costs, deepen inequalities, and undermine democratic governance and territorial sovereignty. The session invites participants to rethink digital infrastructure beyond extractive logics and to consider regulatory approaches centered on environmental justice, democracy, and community rights in the Global South.