Every Saturday, we revisit a story from the archives. This originally aired on July 7, 2025. None of the dates, titles, or other references from that time have been changed.

When AI data centers come to town, companies promise jobs and opportunity. But what about all the water needed to keep data centers running? In one drought-stricken community in Brazil, residents must weigh the choices. How do communities balance the economic boost and environmental cost of hosting water-reliant data centers?

In this episode: 
Laís Martins (‪@laismartins.com‬), Investigative Journalist

Episode credits:

This episode was updated by Tamara Khandaker. The original production team was Marcos Bartolomé, Haleema Shah, Remas Alhawari, Manny Panaretos, Mariana Navarrete, Kylene Kiang, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. 

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer, and Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio. 

Connect with us:

@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Every Saturday, we revisit a story from the archives. This originally aired on July 7, 2025. None of the dates, titles, or other references from that time have been changed.
When AI data centers come to town, companies promise jobs and opportunity. But what about all the water needed to keep data centers running? In one drought-stricken community in Brazil, residents must weigh the choices. How do communities balance the economic boost and environmental cost of hosting water-reliant data centers?
In this episode:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">La&iacute;s Martins (‪<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/laismartins.com">@laismartins.com</a>‬), Investigative Journalist</li>
</ul>
Episode credits:
This episode was updated by Tamara Khandaker. The original production team was Marcos Bartolom&eacute;, Haleema Shah, Remas Alhawari, Manny Panaretos, Mariana Navarrete, Kylene Kiang, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten.&nbsp;
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take&rsquo;s executive producer, and Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera&rsquo;s head of audio. 
Connect with us:
@AJEPodcasts on&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/AJEPodcasts">X</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/ajepodcasts/">Instagram</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/AJEPodcasts">Facebook</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzGHKb8i9vTwjZkiFu6LhzsLUKFkYO60I">YouTube</a>

The Take is a daily interview-driven international news podcast hosted by award-winning journalist Malika Bilal. Each episode focuses on conversations with journalists and people directly impacted by the news of the day, offering our listeners the context necessary to understand what's in the headlines.

With millions of global listens, it's clear the conversations we're having on The Take are worth hearing. And critics think so too. The show has won the Online Journalism Awards, the Signal Awards, Lovie Awards, and Anthem Awards, among others.

The Take is a daily interview-driven international news podcast hosted by award-winning journalist Malika Bilal. Each episode focuses on conversations with journalists and people directly impacted by the news of the day, offering our listeners the context necessary to understand what's in the headlines.
With millions of global listens, it's clear the conversations we're having on The Take are worth hearing. And critics think so too. The show has won the Online Journalism Awards, the Signal Awards, Lovie Awards, and Anthem Awards, among others.

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