Amazon promises to spend $1 billion on communities close to its data centers, but critics push back

Amazon announced a new community program called “Built Together,” where the company promised to invest $1 billion over the next five years on data center communities. According to the company blog post, it will provide the funding to the residents while they determine the best use of the funds to be allocated, including projects that reduce electricity bills.

“With Built Together, Amazon will add more than $1 billion over the next five years to what we’re already doing — with communities in the driver’s seat to determine what’s most useful for them across education, job training, energy affordability, water and energy preservation, and local priorities,” AWS CEO Matt Garman wrote. He said that Amazon is focusing on three key issues that matter most to residents living near its data centers: education and workforce pathways, community energy affordability and water solutions, and flexible funding for local priorities with communities in the lead.

The company says that education and workforce pathways will …