In each WinWind country one stakeholder desk has been established to coordinate a structured and solution oriented stakeholder dialogue and to facilitate social acceptance and support depending on the specific contexts and regional needs. The desks employ an inclusive approach that takes into account differing needs and expectations of the stakeholder as well as the regional or local processes and cultures.
The development of wind energy – more specifically, the debates surrounding projects in the field - have shown that social acceptance is a topic that needs to be better understood through the involvement of the stakeholders, if the European policy targets for renewable energy production are to be accomplished. Because a national strategy to overcome the socio-economic barriers to wind energy acceptance requires a large public involvement, proponents and opponents need to work together in a common space for consultation and debate.
Main tasks of the stakeholder desks:
Every desk comprises at least 15 representatives from different stakeholder groups and market actors in each target region/country (e.g. developers, investors, community energy organisations and co-operatives, wind energy and business associations, regional/local governments, agencies, municipal and regional authorities, policy-makers, advisers, NGOs, citizen groups, ethnic minorities, research institutes).