There was a party atmosphere on 14 June in the Turkish capital, as parents, children, wind energy representatives and government officials came together for wind energy. They were attending the opening ceremony of the exhibition of paintings and photos organised by the Turkish Wind Energy Association (TWEA) for Global Wind Day on 15 June.
Children from local schools in Ankara had submitted brightly coloured paintings showing what wind can do – from blowing kites high in the sky to making boats sail. Their proud mums and dads looked on and took photos as their offspring – dressed in their finest – received their awards from Turkish Energy Minister Yildiz. The winner of the photo competition had gone for a far more haunting and mysterious black and white image of numerous hot air balloons rising above the clouds.
On Global Wind Day itself the action continues in Turkey as a bus-load of people is making the overnight journey from Ankara up to Izmir on the Aegean coast to visit Turkey’s first wind farm and tour Enercon and Vestas factories.
Global Wind Day is the worldwide annual day for discovering wind energy and what it can do.
Find out what is going on near you by having a look at the interactive map.
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.
Global Wind Day – you may have heard of it, or you may be one of the 21,000 people who have “liked” Global Wind Day’s facebook page, but what is it all about? It’s a day for taking the energy debate – switching to renewables from fossil fuels, supporting wind power – out of the realm of policy and in to the real world. In short, Global Wind Day is the international annual day for discovering wind power.
How does a wind turbine work? How much power does the wind farm located near me produce? Why should I support wind power over fossil fuels? These are the types of questions and more that you could find the answer to on Global Wind Day.
How? By attending one of the many events – from wind farm open days to exhibitions and fairs – across the globe, by taking part in our call to G8 leaders to switch to renewables and phase out support for fossil fuels, or by simply browsing our global wind energy FAQs and our Europe wind energy factsheet.
A snapshot of Global Wind Day activities – Brussels and Spain
From next Monday 3 June to 15 June, winners and runners up in the Global Wind Day photo competition will have their photos displayed in the European Parliament. Here is a snapshot of the exhibited photos…
Meanwhile, in Spain from 3-15 June you might notice the special Global Wind Day lottery tickets. Some five million special tickets will be printed, in association with ONCE – the Spanish association for blind people, and the lottery will be drawn on Global Wind Day itself.
Wind power in Africa is likely to experience a huge boost in installed capacity over the next few years, according to an African Development Bank (AfDB) study.
While wind power on the continent currently makes up only 1% of total electricity, or 1 GW, there is an additional 10.5 GW in the pipeline, the study, Development of Wind Energy in Africa, shows.
Africa is faced with the challenge of generating more power to meet existing and future demand as more than 500 million people on the continent lack access to electricity, the study says, adding at least eight African nations are among the developing world’s most endowed in terms of wind energy potential.
Noting that wind power is one of the world’s fastest-growing energy resources, the study said Somalia, Sudan, Libya, Mauritania, Egypt, Madagascar, Kenya and Chad have large onshore wind energy potential.
Exploring 76 African wind energy projects, the study found that only 24 are completed. Of the completed projects, the study said 74% are located in Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia – which collectively accounted for 99% of total installed capacity at the end of 2010.
Global Wind Day on 15 June – the annual day for discovering wind power – is fast approaching.
Continuing with the “wind energy stories” series Robert van Waarden, photographer and wind energy enthusiast, travels to the Czech Republic to uncover the personal stories behind wind energy.
High on a wind turbine, hidden amongst the cherry orchards and the wheat fields of Eastern Czech Republic, is a painting of a raven with a piece of bread in its mouth. The prophet St. Elias the Tishbite was kept alive by ravens feeding him bread when he was hidden in the desert. This is the St. Elias wind turbine and it belongs to the Pravoslavná Akademie Vilémov, a non-profit Orthodox NGO specialised in renewable energy.
“Everything was given to us by God to survive,’ says Roman Juriga, director of the Akademie, “that includes the energy and the capacity to create energy, that is why we have named our turbine St. Elias.”
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