English teacher Ms. Christa Forster opened her computer and navigated to Flint K12, an AI platform for schools.

“Create a fun and informative activity that helps students understand how to disclose their use of AI in an academic paper,” Ms. Forster typed.

The cursor on her computer screen blinked, and within seconds, four polished paragraphs materialized before her eyes. 

Scenes like this have become part of daily academic life at Kinkaid as artificial intelligence has shaped the structure of learning. From refining essays to generating study guides, AI has transformed how teachers and students work, create and think.

However, as this seemingly magical technology becomes increasingly integrated into everyday life, questions about its broader effect—particularly its environmental implications—have drawn global attention.

WHAT IT TAKES TO POWER AI

International organizations, including the UN Environment Programme, have begun warning that AI’s growth may come with a significant environmental cost.

In a recent report, the organization noted, “Governments are racing to develop national AI strategies but rarely do they take the environment and sustainability into account. The lack of environmental guardrails is no less dangerous than the lack of other AI-related safeguards.”

The numbers tell a story about AI’s potential impact.  

A 2025 report published by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute has stated that by 2030, the world’s nearly 11,000 AI data centers are projected to consume 1,050 terawatt-hours of electricity, which is about 12% of the total annual energy use in the U.S.

Behind every chat, essay draft, and image generation is a vast, unseen network of data centers, which are specialized facilities designed to house the high-performance infrastructure needed to power various AI models.

To support the tremendous usage of AI tools, the computer servers in these facilities need to operate around the clock. As a result, the intensive levels of computation in the centers generate significant heat so systems such as liquid cooling are used to maintain temperature, which consumes large amounts of water. 

This hidden demand can add up quickly. In regions already facing dry conditions, such as the western US, the strain is especially evident. For instance, a Google Data Center in Dalles, Oregon, used 29% of the city’s total water supply over the course of a year, sparking public concern and outrage, as mentioned in The Oregonian.

A study by The University of California, Riverside has estimated that by 2027, AI-related infrastructure may consume more water globally than the entire nation of Denmark, a country of six million people.

Flourish by Alex Cai

GROWING CONCERN ON CAMPUS

While the data may feel abstract, the impact could be much closer to home than many realize because the technology driving consumption of environmental resources is in the hands of people every day through chat messaging, image generation, and search queries. 

In fact, AI’s environmental impact has come to the forefront of many discussions among student leaders, including those of the Upper School Sustainability Committee.

“The Sustainability Committee has talked about the energy consumption and water usage of physical AI clusters,” said senior Julia Godinich, the committee’s co-chair. “The demand for more cheap energy to be utilized for AI data centers could set back progress in decarbonizing the energy grid if we don’t switch to cleaner energy sources.” 

The committee plans to present its findings to the Upper School this academic year, hoping to spark more conversation about “the ecological effects of AI to encourage responsible limited usage,” Godinich said.

“It’s a relevant topic, and it’s actively shaping the world,” she said. “I know I might sound a little doom and gloom about AI, but it’s important to know the environmental cost of such a powerful tool that’s recently become a more integral part of our lives.”

Godinich’s perspective reflects a growing awareness among students of AI’s environmental costs.

“It concerns me,” senior Maithreyi Asthagiri said. “There is always a price to pay for innovation.”

Flourish by Alex Cai

OPTIMISM FOR PROGRESS AND INNOVATION

Still, some community members see the conversation from a different angle, noting AI’s capacity to evolve in comparison with other technologies. 

“AI’s environmental impact isn’t negligible, but it’s not as large as some may believe,” said Mr. Vinnie Vrotny, Kinkaid’s Director of Innovation and Technology.

Mr. Vrotny referenced a 2025 International Energy Agency study that compared the footprint of AI systems to other industries. The findings, he explained, said that while AI will increase power demand, its share remains smaller than other sectors such as manufacturing.                      

For example, the report shows that from 2024-2030, the increase in electricity demand by data centers may be 100 to 300 fewer terrawatt hours than the industries of other technologies, such as electric cars and air conditioning.   

Mr. Vrotny said he sees today’s concerns as part of a familiar technological pattern, noting that when the steam engine first appeared, it too generated large amounts of waste. 

“Over time, we learned to use resources more efficiently,” he said. “AI is in that same early phase. We’re only three years out from ChatGPT’s release, so we’re still learning how to make it efficient.”

He compared the current wave of enthusiasm to what technologists call the “hype cycle,” a curve that begins with inflated expectations, dips into disillusionment, and then rises into lasting productivity.

 “We’re at the upper edge of that curve,” Mr. Vrtony said. “Eventually, the technology will stabilize, and companies will learn to better allocate resources over time.”

Some signs of progress have already become visible. Developers have explored ways to make AI models more efficient by using renewable energy sources such as solar and wind in data centers to reduce the use of fossil fuels.

Tech companies, such as Microsoft, have even been experimenting with water-free cooling systems.

According to a statement on the company’s website from Mr. Steve Solomon, Microsoft’s vice president of data infrastructure engineering, new chip-level cooling solutions promise to “avoid the need for more than 125 million liters of water per year per [Microsoft] data center.”

Godinich had an opportunity to speak with Amazon Web Services’ Vice President of Global Services, Mr. Uwem Ukpong, during his leadership seminar at Kinkaid titled “Leading in a World Transformed by the Computing Revolution.”

During their conversation, Mr. Ukpong explained how companies like Amazon are investing in cleaner energy sources, such as nuclear power. He also highlighted new innovations in water conservation, such as using wastewater to cool servers and systems that recycle evaporated water within facilities.

“There are solutions that exist to these problems, so it’s only a matter of time before AI has a net positive effect on the environment,” Godinich said.

Genially by Alex Cai

PREPARING FOR AN AI-DRIVEN FUTURE

At Kinkaid, the conversation about AI is no longer just about curiosity regarding what the technology can do. Questions have arisen around how it should be used and what responsibility comes with its power.

To encourage that kind of critical thinking, Mr. Vrotny, along with Head of Upper School Ms. Alex Spencer and Director of Academics Ms. Crystal Fain, is helping develop a K-12 framework that weaves AI literacy, ethics and morals into the curriculum.

 “We’re defining the skills and understanding students need at each grade level,” Mr. Vrotny said, referring to a framework that will reach beyond individual classes. 

Assemblies, guest speakers, and interdisciplinary projects through the new Sheedy Center for STEM aim to give students a broader understanding of how AI intersects with ethics, the environment, and innovation. 

Mr. Vrotny said he will also introduce an Interim Term course titled “Human Agency in the Age of AI,” which will focus on how technology shapes purpose, moral decision-making and creativity.

“This technology is part of something much bigger,” Mr. Vrotny said. “AI is not just a game changer for education. I think it’s going to be a societal game changer.”