A case-study examination of the catalysts and impediments to the development of wind power, discussing the political and policy-related issues surround its implementation.

The aim of the book is to analyse the factors that have influenced wind power outcomes in a range of countries which have featured significant wind power deployment programmes. A central theme is the relationship between patterns of ownership and the outcomes. These flow from different social environments, but they are associated with different types of planning outcome and deployment rates. Grass roots ownership is more widespread than is commonly thought, although it is not a panacea for effective wind power programmes. Financial policies used to promote wind power also have important influences of the rates of deployment. However, what seems to be most important for wind power deployment is a double coincidence of widespread social support for wind power deployment and effective financial support systems for wind power.

Taking a comparative case study approach between Canada and Germany, this book investigates the contrasting response of governments to anti-wind movements. Environmental social movements have been critical players for encouraging the shift towards increased use of renewable energy. However, social movements mobilizing against the installation of wind turbines have now become a major obstacle to their increased deployment. Andrea Bues draws on a cross-Atlantic comparative analysis to investigate the different contexts of contentious energy policy. Focusing on two sub-national forerunner regions in installed wind power capacity – Brandenburg and Ontario – Bues draws on social movement theory to explore the concept of discursive energy space and propose explanations as to why governments respond differently to social movements. Overall, Social Movements against Wind Power in Canada and Germany offers a novel conceptualization of discursive-institutional contexts of contentious energy politics and helps better understand protest against renewable energy policy. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of renewable energy policy, sustainability and climate change politics, social movement studies and environmental sociology.

A comprehensive political analysis of the rapid growth in renewable wind and solar power, mapping an energy transition through theory, case studies, and policy. Wind and solar are the most dynamic components of the global power sector. How did this happen? After the 1973 oil crisis, the limitations of an energy system based on fossil fuels created an urgent need to experiment with alternatives, and some pioneering governments reaped political gains by investing heavily in alternative energy such as wind or solar power. Public policy enabled growth over time, and economies of scale brought down costs dramatically. In this book, Michaël Aklin and Johannes Urpelainen offer a comprehensive political analysis of the rapid growth in renewable wind and solar power, mapping an energy transition through theory, case studies, and policy analysis. Aklin and Urpelainen argue that, because the fossil fuel energy system and political support for it are so entrenched, only an external shock—an abrupt rise in oil prices, or a nuclear power accident, for example—allows renewable energy to grow. They analyze the key factors that enable renewable energy to withstand political backlash, andt they draw on this analyisis to explain and predict the development of renewable energy in different countries over time. They examine the pioneering efforts in the United States, Germany, and Denmark after the 1973 oil crisis and other shocks; explain why the United States surrendered its leadership role in renewable energy; and trace the recent rapid growth of modern renewables in electricity generation, describing, among other things, the return of wind and solar to the United States. Finally, they apply the lessons of their analysis to contemporary energy policy issues.

Bringing together contributions from leading researchers, this volume reflects on the political, institutional and social factors that have shaped the recent expansion of wind energy, and to consider what lessons this experience may provide for the future expansion of other renewable technologies.

Shows that economic concerns about jobs, costs, and consumption, rather than climate change, are likely to drive energy transition in developing countries.

"Tens of thousands of wind turbines are in operation worldwide today. This book gives a detailed account of the rise of modern wind energy technology in California and Denmark, its cradle. There is a world of difference between the approaches to the development of wind power in these two countries. In Denmark, groups of neighbors stimulated its decentralized, small-scale use and gradual development, while futuristic-looking large-scale wind farms sprouted like mushrooms on the Californian hills. However, the thriving Californian market did not result in a successful American wind turbine industry. In contrast, the Danish industry currently produces more than half the world output of turbines. In 'Winds of Change', Rinie van Est describes how and to what extent public policies influenced the development of wind energy technology and industry in California and Denmark. He explains the marked differences between the two countries by looking at the way in which policy makers, technicians and entrepreneurs - in interplay - shaped the development of wind power. The book also explores how national political and techno-economic traditions guided the activities of these innovators. The book is highly relevant for policy experts, those working in R&D, corporate managers, environmentalists, scientists and technologists who are looking for ways to keep technological innovation in line with social needs and public demands."--Omslag.