ABC Sunshine Coast

Topic: Secondary Education

Tuesday, 23 June 2026, at 2:53 pm

Students from different high schools in the region joined a strike.

In short:

The Sunshine Coast Council is working with Google and NEXTDC to build an AI data center in Maroochydore.

High school and university students are protesting against the development.

What's next?

The council wants to use Maroochydore's location near an undersea cable to grow the city's digital hub.

A $200 million data center is being built on the Sunshine Coast, and students are protesting its environmental and social impact.

The new data center in Maroochydore will be one of 162 data centers in Australia.

At least 90 more data centers are planned across the country, and some people are calling for stronger regulations.

NEXTDC is working with the Sunshine Coast Council and Google to build a data center in a new tower in Maroochydore.

An AI data center is a facility that houses IT infrastructure for training and using AI applications. It uses a lot of water to keep machines cool.

The Greens are calling for a stop to big data center developments, saying they use too much energy and water.

It's not clear how many resources the Maroochydore AI site will use.

In 2024-25, data centers used about 4 terawatt-hours of electricity, which is 2% of Australia's main grid.

This is equal to the electricity used by over 700,000 homes.

A 16-year-old organiser, Ruby Dyer, said she's concerned about the impact of AI on the environment and society.

Ruby wants to show leaders that many people are not okay with the lack of regulations on AI.

Ruby was inspired by Greta Thunberg's climate strike and used Instagram to get support.

Ruby's concerns include the environmental impact, misuse of AI, and fewer jobs for young people.

Ruby thinks AI is taking away jobs, so there will be fewer jobs when she enters the workforce.

A 19-year-old university student, Kate McGeechan, joined the strike to support the high school students.

The placards at the strike had heartfelt messages.

Kate was motivated by Ruby's Instagram post and thinks young Australians have valid concerns about AI.

Kate thinks it's great that high school students organised the strike.

Kate wants people to think carefully before using AI for everyday tasks.

Kate thinks the human brain is more powerful than any computer.

Kate questions how increasing dependence on AI will shape future professions.

The students are planning more actions, including a social media campaign to investigate AI regulations.

A university expert, Erica Mealy, says some concerns raised by the students are legitimate and being debated nationally and internationally.

Erica Mealy says AI factories use a lot of data.

Dr. Mealy thinks AI can improve lives when used correctly, especially for dirty or dangerous work.

The proposed data center could bring benefits to the region, such as advances in remote healthcare.

Queensland's first regional data center was built in Maroochydore in 2021.

The Sunshine Coast Council says its partnerships with NEXTDC and Google will bring long-term economic growth and digital resilience.

The council says the data center will provide more reliable connectivity for cloud services and digital operations.

The SC2 facility will be carbon neutral, but the council didn't answer specific environmental assessment questions.

Tuesday, 23 June 2026, at 2:53 pm

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