The Event

In Dublin city we will be at the Ha'penny Bridge from 5.15pm to 6.30pm on Wed 22nd April. We're inviting you to please  come along even if you can make it for 10 minutes or so.  We're also hoping that if people can play a musical instrument they could help generate a lively atmosphere by adding a couple of tunes to the occasion. 

Earth  Day  2026  has  “ called  on  communities  worldwide  to  take  action  during Earth  Week  to  support  clean  air,  clean  water,  clean  energy,  protect  natural resources,  and  climate  stability.  These  factors  are  directly  linked  to  human health,  economic  predictability, food security, and cross-border infrastructure performance”.  

DiEM25  members  are  gathering  together  in  cities across  Europe  to  hold celebration  activities  for  this  day.  In  Ireland  we  are  addressing  how  the  race to  host  Big  Tech  Data  Centres  raises urgent questions about sovereignty, sustainability and public ownership  Huge  quantities  of  water  are  used  in  data centres  for  cooling  purposes.  According  to  the  Environmental  and  Energy Study Institute,  large  data  centres  can  consume  up  to  five  million  gallons  per  day, equivalent  to  the  water  use  of  a  town  populated  by  10,000  to  50,000  people . In  recent  years  the  Dublin  government  tried  to  impose  a  tax  on  us  for  using water  as  part  of  their  intention  to  privatise  water  so  that  large  Corporations would  have  yet  another  means  to  fleece  us  for  their  monetary  gains.  The people  successfully  resisted  this,  and  are  still  demanding  a  Referendum  to  let the  people  decide  on  our  water resources staying as a public utility for the collective good. 
Data  Centres  industrial  cooling  systems  also  require  large  amounts  of electricity to  operate.  Data  centres  consumed  22%  of  Ireland’s  electricity  in  2024,  which is  more  than  half  of  the  approximate  40%  of  the  country’s  electricity  that comes  from  renewable  sources.  A  resultant  demand-supply  imbalance  will contribute  to  price  increases  for  consumers  already  experiencing  energy  cost of living  pressures  caused  by  the  US  /  Israeli  criminal  attacks  on  Iran,  Lebanon and  Palestine  with  the  intention  of  destroying  these peoples and stopping them from living as independent sovereign nations. 
On  current  metrics,  data  centre  growth  in  Ireland  is  totally  unsustainable.  As of April  2024,  Ireland  hosts  82  operational  data  centres,  with  14  more  under construction  and  a  further  40  granted  planning  approval,  mostly  in  the  Dublin area.  There  are  also  efforts to spread data centre growth throughout Ireland, such as on a 145 acre site in Ennis. 
Data  Centres involvement  in  increasing  militarisation  and  in  illegal  wars,  such as the  ongoing  genocidal  attacks  on  the  people  of  Palestine  are  also  a  major concern  for  people.  This  recently  came  under  public  scrutiny  when  the  Irish Council  for  Civil Liberties  (ICCL)  filed  a  complaint  against  Microsoft  to  the  Data Protection Commission  (DPC)  allegpng  that  Microsoft’s  processing  of  personal data  facilitates  war crimes,  crimes  against  humanity,  and  genocide,  by  Israeli military  in  the  Occupied  Palestinian Territories  ICCL files complaint against Microsoft for unlawful data processing on behalf of Israeli Defence Forces in Gaza - Irish Council for Civil Liberties