Social Movements, Wind Energy and Global Industry

The future –and present– problem of energy supply is already a pressing global issue. Among renewable energy sources, wind energy stands out; it is the world’s fastest growing energy industry, yet it has failed to reach its full potential and it is developing irregularly in different countries around the world. For instance, countries with impressive wind potential such as the US, Canada or the UK still have underdeveloped wind energy. Puzzled by this uneven development, Ion Bogdan Vasi decided to explore the global development of the aeolian energy sector. In Winds of Change, he is particularly interested in the ways social movements impact the industry.

His research leads him to describe how social movements influence policy-making processes, how they shape consumer demand for new products, alter the prevailing reasoning in the industry, as well as how they redistribute technology at a global level. Over five years, and across six countries, Vasi interviewed more than seventy individuals: environmental activists and professionals, energy policy-makers and wind power engineers, innovators and advocates. Thus, this book is not simply about wind energy; rather it brings to light all the actors involved, and the way they shape, promote or prevent the development of the wind industry.

It will thus prove fascinating reading for any policy-maker, academic or industrialist who wants to become familiar with the wind energy business and to understand the way people, policy and the industry are tied together.

Winds of Change. The Environmental Movement and the Global Development of the Wind Energy Industry Ion Bogdan Vasi, Oxford University Press, $49.95

–T. S.