By 2030 the world’s primary energy consumption is expected to grow by 40%. The global population will rise from 7 billion people now to over 8 billion people in 20 years. More than half of the growth in fossil fuel consumption will be used to generate power unless the world leaders boost wind power and other renewable energies. Without much more wind and renewable power production, CO2 emissions will explode by over 30%.
Just days before the ‘Rio +20’ global conference, thousands of citizens all over the world will discover the power of wind energy. On 15 June, over 50 organisations are joining together to present ‘Global Wind Day’, where citizens show their support for wind power. Last year more than 230 events were organised in 40 countries, including wind farm visits, open air concerts and public debates.
This year, ahead of Global Wind Day, 2,300 people from 65 countries participated in a wind power photo competition, including one sender from a scientific station in Antarctica. 16 Global Wind Day ambassadors, including Adnan Amin, the Director General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), support this year’s events: in Hamburg a charity run, in Wembley, London, a football tournament, in New Zealand, painting competitions in schools, in Boston, USA, the “Energy Week 2012”, and spectacular abseiling from wind turbines in Austria...