Queen calls for water, electricity use by data centres to be evaluated

Raja Zarith Sofiah, Queen of Malaysia has called for the authorities, the private sector, and the public to evaluate the impact of data centre development in the country, particularly concerning the environment and the well-being of the community.

She said such an assessment must take into account the high consumption of electricity and water, land misuse, and the effects on the lives of the local community.

“I hope that the authorities, the private sector, and the public will evaluate the impact of ‘data centres’ in this country.

“We must consider the extremely high demand for electricity and water, land misuse, and the overall impact of these data centres on our society.

“These include issues such as noise levels and the brightness of lights that remain illuminated from day through to the night,” she said this at the 70th Convocation Ceremony of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) here today.

Raja Zarith, who also serves as the Chancellor of UTM, noted that technological advancement cannot be decoupled from the sustainability of the earth especially given that human activity has already had a profound impact, contributing to climate change, pollution, the loss of biodiversity, and the depletion of natural resources.

In this regard, she urged the educated community to play a role in addressing environmental degradation by shifting their attitudes and embracing a sense of responsibility to preserve the planet for future generations.

Furthermore, Raja Zarith emphasised that artificial intelligence (AI) should be harnessed to improve the quality of life for society, rather than being pursued solely for economic gain.

She noted that as a research university and the institution that pioneered the establishment of Malaysia’s first Faculty of Artificial Intelligence, UTM bears a significant responsibility to ensure that technological development remains guided by ethics, integrity, and human values.

The Queen also reminded graduates that the rapid evolution of AI brings both significant opportunities and challenges, requiring them to continuously enhance their knowledge and skills to keep pace with technological change.

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