Workshop 3

March 2026

The Environmental Impact of Data Centers
Power, Water, Land: The Footprint of the Digital Economy

The rapid expansion of data centers is reshaping the resource and environmental landscape for cities and states across the US and Germany. TAFNE's third workshop convened around 45 participants from its partner states to take stock of these pressures and explore how communities can respond.

The conversation covered three dimensions of impact: higher energy consumption and its effects on local grids and affordability; water use, particularly where cooling demand coincides with existing water stress; and land use, as large campus-scale facilities compete with agriculture and other community needs. Noise from cooling systems and backup generators emerged as an underappreciated public health and wildlife concern.

Several responses to these challenges were spotlighted. The City and County of Denver shared plans for a moratorium on new data center construction while it develops community and environmental safeguards. The National League of Cities outlined how municipalities across the US are responding to growing resident skepticism about data centers. And the Berlin-based think tank Borderstep presented on a forthcoming EU sustainability rating and labeling system for data centers — a potential policy tool with implications well beyond Europe.

Workshop 2

January 2026

Nature-Based Solutions for Heat Adaptation
Designing Cooler Cities

As heatwaves intensify and wildfire risk grows on both sides of the Atlantic, cities and states are turning to green and blue infrastructure to cool urban environments. TAFNE's second virtual workshop drew more than 50 participants from its core partner states to share strategies and emerging technologies for heat adaptation.

Presentations from Düsseldorf and Dallas opened the discussion, which ranged across parks, green roofs, vegetated corridors, retention ponds, and wetlands — and how these systems reduce urban heat through shading, evapotranspiration, and lower energy demand. Participants also grappled with the harder questions: equitable access to cooling green space, long-term maintenance, and the design constraints of dense urban environments.

Workshop 1

October 2025

Nature-Based Solutions for Water Management
From Riverbed Restoration to Sponge Cities

How can communities move beyond concrete and pipes to manage flooding and drought? That was the central question at TAFNE's inaugural virtual workshop, which brought together regional and local leaders from Germany and the United States to explore nature-based solutions (NbS) for water resilience.

Representatives from cities and states in TAFNE shared firsthand experiences with approaches ranging from wetland and riverbed restoration to "sponge city" design — urban landscapes engineered to absorb, store, and slowly release water rather than channel it away. Participants weighed the practical benefits and trade-offs of these approaches against conventional gray infrastructure, and a clear consensus emerged: NbS offer cost-effective, community-centered ways to build resilience while restoring ecosystems and improving quality of life.

TAFNE Launch Event in Washington, DC

June 2025

TAFNE was publicly launched at the German Marshall Fund's Washington, DC offices in June 2025, marking the start of a two-year transatlantic exchange on environmental stewardship, resilient infrastructure, and resource efficiency.

The launch featured a panel discussion bringing together representatives from the cities of Austin and Dallas, the state of Pennsylvania, the American Flood Coalition, and the German American Chamber of Commerce. Together, they made the case that nature and environmental stewardship are not just obligations, they are strategic assets. Well-managed natural systems strengthen infrastructure, improve resource efficiency, and generate inclusive economic growth.