Why Are Data Centers Now at the Center of the ESG Conversation? As digital demand accelerates—driven by AI, cloud computing, and real-time data processing—data centers have become one of the fastest-growing sources of energy consumption globally. Recent estimates suggest data centers account for around 1–1.5% of global electricity use, with projections rising sharply due to generative AI workloads. This surge has placed them firmly under the ESG spotlight, where stakeholders