Data Center Industry Targets Youth to Improve Public Image
Data center industry groups are using children's stories and materials to promote their image and foster interest among young people.
The nonprofit 7x24 Exchange International is implementing a public relations strategy aimed at improving the image of the data center industry by engaging with young audiences. The organization emphasizes the critical role of data centers in modern infrastructure and seeks to build understanding and positive sentiment towards the sector from an early age.
A key initiative is the publication of a children's storybook, "What is a Data Center?," featuring a honey badger named Honey who tours a data center with an employee named Oliver. The story explains the essential function of data centers in ensuring service availability at all times, illustrating the industry's effort to simplify complex technology for a younger audience.
These outreach efforts are part of a broader industry response to growing criticism regarding the environmental impact and extensive development of data centers. While continuing traditional lobbying, job creation programs, and seeking tax incentives, the sector is adopting more creative community-building tactics. This approach mirrors strategies previously employed by industries facing public scrutiny, such as the tobacco and oil sectors, which engaged with educational institutions.
An example includes the Potomac chapter of the Association for Computer Operations Management (AFCOM) sponsoring holiday-themed craft kits distributed to thousands of first-graders in Loudoun County, Virginia, an area known as "Data Center Alley." These kits also included informational cards highlighting the positive economic contributions of the data center industry to the local community.