By Jessica Anania

The countdown to Global Wind Day marks more than just a wait for a fun-filled day spent outside discovering wind energy. It is also a chance for the public, politicians, and industry officials to discuss wind energy and its benefits, sharing ideas, exchanging opinions, and deepening their knowledge and understanding along the way.

Across Europe, wind farms are open, wind energy is the theme of festivals and wind energy information points will be set up across the continent from Lisbon to Warsaw.

In Denmark, Folkemødet, an annual political conference of over 30,000 participants and 1,300 events spanning four days, coincides with Global Wind Day.

“For the Danish Wind Industry Association (DWIA), Folkemødet was the obvious place to incorporate Global Wind Day due to the nature of Folkemødet and the philosophy of Global Wind Day, where it is about bringing knowledge of wind to the public,” stated Anders Mika Dalegaard, Head of Events at DWIA.

A scene from Global Wind Day last year

By Jessica Anania

On 15 June, thousands of people will gather at over 200 events across the globe to discover wind energy as part of Global Wind Day. Global Wind Day offers both wind energy enthusiasts and novices opportunities to visit wind farms, discover the technology and its benefits and to have fun at one of the many festivals and open days on offer.

While the events of Global Wind Day are widespread, all involved are united by a belief in the importance of advocating for green energy.

In Tamilnadu, India, over 320 students at the Everest KenBridge School aged 3-13 will spend 15 June examining the structures of wind turbines and learning how to calculate wind speeds. Mr. Jayaganapthy, the school’s principal, describes how their area has already faced severe energy shortages and remains heavily reliant on diesel fuel. After installing solar powered lights and realising their efficiency, he became even more interested in renewable energy options. And he realised that his students were too when involving them in Global Wind Day.

“For every social cause, we need to promote awareness programmes amongst students, which will in turn become a revolution,” Mr. Jayaganapthy explained.

European Commissioner for Energy Günther Oettinger

by Kara Perconti

The European Parliament yesterday gave its green light to the guidelines for the EU energy infrastructure package, which sets out corridors for Europe-wide energy infrastructure, seeks to speed-up permits and identifies priority projects, including an offshore electricity grid in the North Sea.

“This is really a breakthrough and will give a big push to much needed infrastructure: Rather than waiting up to 12 years or longer for a permit, developers of crucial cross-border infrastructure – such as pipelines or power grids – will have a decision in about four years,” said European Commissioner for Energy, Günther Oettinger. “This will save them time and money – and will help us creating a true European market where energy systems are physically connected with each other. Consumers and companies will profit because competition keeps costs down”.

The next step is for the European Council to formally approve the regulation.