Who pays for the AI boom? Our communities.
In BigTentUSA’s October 26 livestream, congressional candidate Justin Early (D, TX-31), author and founder of Third Act Bill McKibben, and Jess Piper, executive director of Blue Missouri, examined how massive data centers threaten water supplies, strain electric grids, and burden communities with noise and pollution. They challenged promises of lasting jobs and prosperity, warning that temporary construction work can leave behind few permanent positions and substantial public costs.
The discussion connected environmental justice, corporate influence, and data privacy, highlighting why opposition is bringing people together across party lines. Early called for enforceable protections: developer-funded grid upgrades, clean energy, public reporting of water and electricity use, and stronger local control. McKibben urged vigilance against permitting changes that could weaken communities’ ability to challenge projects.
Their message: contact officials, request public records, and organize with neighbors. Protect your water, demand accountability, and make your community’s voice impossible to ignore.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS:
Justin Early is a candidate running for U.S. Representative in Texas’ 31st Congressional District. Growing up in a working-class family, both of Early’s parents served in the U.S. army, which motivated him to do the same. Early served as a paratrooper at Fort Bragg, and then as a LAN Systems Administrator at the Defense Intelligence Agency in the Pentagon, and continued in that role in the aftermath of 9/11. Since leaving the military, Early has established a career in cybersecurity, and currently works as a cybersecurity architect.
Bill McKibben is the founder of Third Act, which organizes people over 60 for action on climate and justice. His 1989 book, “The End of Nature“, is regarded as the first book about climate change for a general audience. He has since written 20 books, with work appearing in The New Yorker and Rolling Stone. McKibben helped found 350.org, the first global grassroots climate campaign, and played a leading role in opposition to Keystone XL and the fossil fuel divestment campaign. He is the Schumann Distinguished Scholar at Middlebury College and has received the Gandhi Peace Prize and Right Livelihood Award.
Jess Piper is a mother to five and grandmother to three and lives on a small farm on the Missouri/Iowa border. She was born and raised in rural America. She was an American Literature teacher for 16 years. After the 2016 election of Trump, Jess became politically active. Jess ran for office in 2022 for State Representative in HD1 in Northwest Missouri. Jess writes a well known newsletter: “The View from Rural Missouri“
