A Field Guide: How to Stop an AI Data Centre

In 2025, Goodman Group proposed Project Mars, a $1.2 billion hyperscale data centre in a business park in Lane Cove West. Homes were 20 metres away, a school and childcare centre a distant 160 metres. Lane Cove National Park and the river are a stone’s throw. The plans included a storing one million litres of diesel on site, nearly 200 tonnes of lithium batteries and a hum that would never stop. Of course developers and techbros thought this was a reasonable idea. 374 submissions were made to the planning department, only nine supported it. Of course that wasn’t enough to put the brakes on Project Mars. And why would - it’s a hyper scale data centre, can’t you read? Into action went a group of locals. With no budget, existing busy lives and no existing playbook on what to do next, they knew they had the ground to launch resistance. They built a website and a petition, and ran community meetings. They gave evidence at a NSW parliamentary inquiry. They moved a shareholder resolution, and brought a Senate inquiry hearing to Lane Cove itself. Eventually Goodman withdrew. The spokesperson for that campaign, Sasha Titchkosky, is our special guest at Finding Nature’s next Supper Club. This campaign, and what Sasha helped to lead, offers strength in a pivotal moment. Around the world, data centres have become a lightning rod for wider unease about AI. In the US, community opposition stopped or delayed 75 projects worth around $130 billion in the first three months of 2026 alone. 83% of Australians do not want to live near a data centre and only 16% believe host communities will receive any direct benefit. 1% of Australians completely trust AI companies. A whole PR industry has sprung up to change people’s minds here and abroad while politicians claim Australians are importing rage from overseas. Politically, the Federal Government’s own consultation paper on AI infrastructure says more work is needed to build public trust. It states Sydney Water’s estimate that data centres could use up to 20 per cent of Sydney’s drinking water by 2035. It also cites AEMO’s forecast that their share of grid electricity will rise from about 3 to 13 per cent within a decade. At this Finding Nature Supper Club we’ll be getting into the practicalities and lessons each of us can take back to our community to resist the infrastructure that hosts ‘the greatest theft in history’, that concentrates wealth and power, empowers authoritarianism and reduces privacy. Sasha will be our guide in understanding what worked on the north shore of Sydney, the details of the campaign that was run and the agency we all have to object to what we find unconscionable. To go with the shared conversation and meal, Cameron Tonkinwise will deliver a sermon on resistance and AI culture. He’ll cover where AI culture came from and the long history of people refusing technologies imposed on them. He’ll provoke, share history and offer insights into how this moment is just the latest in a long line of resistance movements. Our special guest Sasha Titchkosky is a Sydney businesswoman and spokesperson for the Lane Cove Responsible Planning Group. She has spent years bringing impact into her work, from climate and environmental campaigns to Kylea Tink’s election campaign. A rower who spends much of her time on the Lane Cove River, she joined the fight to give a voice to the river and national park. She was surprised to find the planning process wasn’t required to consider either of them. Her advice to other communities is simple: don’t give up. Why Finding Nature Supper Club Finding Nature Supper Club brings together a small circle of curious, engaged people for an evening of real conversation about the issues shaping our world. There’s no jargon and no performance, just good food and conversation with brilliant people. As always, the peerless Gus_tronomy will not only satisfy hunger but leave you wanting more. Don’t wait, these tickets won’t.