By Renee Ma
On May 30th, I had the privilege of representing LinkMind at the POWER Act Lobby Day in Springfield, at the Illinois State Capitol. This was one of the most meaningful days in our organization’s journey so far, as we connected with lawmakers and directly translated our research findings into policy outcomes.
The day consisted of individual meetings with legislators, followed by a rally on the Capitol grounds in support of the POWER Act.
The POWER Act is landmark legislation aimed at addressing the growing public health harms caused by large-scale data centers in Illinois, which disproportionately burden low-income communities and communities of color with air pollution, water consumption, grid strain, and raising utility costs.
This issue sits at the heart of LinkMind’s work. Our Environmental Risk Exposure Survey, which I collected responses for throughout the day, is designed to document and quantify these exact inequities; it gathers data on how communities near data center infrastructure experienced elevated risk to pollution. The goal is to produce scientific findings and evidence that lawmakers can act on.
Durring Lobby Day, I met individually with Senator Fine, Representative Gong-Gershowitz, and the Leadership Assistant for Representative Gabel’s office to discuss LinkMind’s mission and research.
I’m proud to share that Senator Fine expressed her support for the organization, a meaningful endorsement as we continue to grow. I also submitted a policy memo to Representative Gong-Gershowitz’s office, advocating for action on data center-related environmental inequities and asking for her support for the organization.
Lobby Day was a one in a lifetime experience and a powerful reminder of why evidence-based advocacy matters. By grounding our work in rigorous research first, we can show up to conversations like these with something concrete to contribute to the broader push for change.
