This Week in Cleantech (11/13/2026) - Amid data center pushback, big tech tries a new strategy

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This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's episode features special guest Clara Hudson from The Wall Street Journal, who discusses how hyperscale data centers are attempting to deal with local opposition by changing their tone.

This week’s “Cleantecher of the Week” is Franco Rodríguez Viau. After family friends in Argentina lost their homes to wildfires, Franco and two buddies launched an AI wildfire early warning system when they were 16. The team says it can spot a fire within its first three minutes, about 35 minutes faster than NASA on average, then alert firefighters by WhatsApp. Last year it helped authorities respond to more than 2,000 wildfires across 21 countries. Congratulations, Franco!

This Week in Cleantech — November 13, 2026

1. A nationwide backlash against data centers erupts at the polls — The Washington Post
2. Why Everything Should Be Electric, Even If the Power Comes From Coal — Bloomberg
3. Distributed energy could save the U.S. power grid $614B — Factor This
4. Can green cement decarbonise the data centre building boom? — Financial Times
5. Big Tech Is Soft-Launching Data Centers Early, Bracing for Scrutiny — The Wall Street Journal

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