WIND POWER

For centuries, humans have harnessed the wind. Windmills once ground grain and pumped water, dotting landscapes from the Dutch countryside to the American West. Today, sleek turbines take their place, generating power without polluting the air or warming the planet.

Wind power has grown exponentially in the past two decades. In 2024, it accounted for over 10% of electricity generation in the United States and nearly 5% worldwide. Denmark generates more than 50% of their electricity from wind, proving that a clean energy grid is not only possible but practical. Offshore wind farms are expanding rapidly, tapping into powerful ocean winds, while advances in turbine design have made onshore projects more efficient and less intrusive. Modern turbines tower above their predecessors, with longer blades and advanced materials that capture energy even at low wind speeds.

Utilities and governments once skeptical of renewables now embrace wind power because it has become the cheapest source of new electricity generation in many regions. According to the International Energy Agency, the cost of onshore wind has dropped nearly 70% since 2010, making it competitive with, and often cheaper than, natural gas and coal. This economic reality has driven unprecedented investment. In the U.S alone, wind energy projects added $20 billion to the economy in 2022, creating thousands of jobs.

Wind power’s environmental benefits are undeniable. In 2023, U.S. wind energy avoided over 350 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions—the equivalent of taking 73 million cars off the road. Unlike coal or gas plants, wind turbines require no water for cooling, conserving billions of gallons annually, protecting ecosystems drained by drought.

Wind turbines can be deployed across rural landscapes, offshore waters, and urban environments, turning every gust into a potential source of power. This democratization of energy gives communities control over their own power supply and shields them from the volatility of fossil fuel markets.

Landowners who host turbines on their property receive lease payments, often providing crucial income for farmers and rural communities. In Texas and Iowa, wind energy has revitalized small towns, creating jobs while keeping energy dollars local. In Europe, coastal cities are transforming into hubs for offshore wind development, attracting investment and skilled labor. This is reshaping local economies.

Advances in battery technology and grid modernization are rapidly solving the intermittency challenge, allowing excess energy generated during windy periods to be stored and used when the air is still. In Denmark, surplus wind energy powers electric heating systems in homes. In California, large-scale batteries now store wind and solar power, ensuring a stable supply around the clock.

Careful siting, improved turbine design, and ongoing research have significantly reduced wildlife impacts. A 2023 study by the American Wind Wildlife Institute found that properly sited wind farms pose a far lower threat to bird populations than climate change itself, which is rapidly destroying habitats and altering migration patterns. As for aesthetics, beauty is subjective. A landscape dotted with wind turbines is far preferable to one scarred by strip mines, oil derricks, and smokestacks.

The bigger obstacle to wind power is not technology or wildlife but politics. Fossil fuel companies, threatened by wind’s rapid ascent, lobby aggressively to stall progress. In states like Wyoming and Oklahoma, legislators backed by coal and gas interests have pushed for taxes and restrictions on wind development, claiming—without irony—that renewable energy threatens the economy. These efforts ignore the reality that wind energy creates jobs, stabilizes energy prices, and attracts investment. In states embracing wind, such as Texas, the economic benefits are undeniable. Even in the heart of oil country, the wind industry thrives because it delivers cheap, reliable power.

Globally, wind energy is accelerating. China leads the world in installed capacity, with more than 300 gigawatts of wind power—enough to power every home in the United States. The European Union has made offshore wind a centerpiece of its Green Deal, with countries like the United Kingdom and Germany investing heavily in floating turbine technology that can be deployed in deeper waters.

In the Global South, wind is bringing electricity to communities long ignored by fossil fuel infrastructure. In Kenya, the Lake Turkana Wind Power project, the largest in Africa, now supplies nearly 20% of the country’s electricity, powering homes, schools, and businesses while reducing dependence on imported oil.

A society powered by wind is a society that values resilience, innovation, and harmony with nature. It is a society that invests in long-term solutions rather than short-term profits, one that sees energy not as a commodity controlled by monopolies but as a common good. Children growing up near wind farms see the future in motion—clean, quiet, and endlessly renewable. They learn that power does not have to come from extraction and combustion but from partnership with the natural world.

Of course, wind power alone cannot solve the climate crisis. It must be paired with solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, and energy storage solutions. But wind provides the backbone, the reliable baseline upon which a clean energy grid can be built. It is scalable, cost-effective, and proven. The only thing standing in the way is inertia—the refusal of entrenched interests to accept that the age of fossil fuels is ending.

Therefore, under Folklaw:

Wind power shall be prioritized as a primary source of clean energy. Governments will invest in wind energy infrastructure, including onshore and offshore projects, while modernizing the grid to integrate wind with other renewable sources.

Energy storage solutions will be expanded to address intermittency, ensuring a reliable power supply. Wind projects must be responsibly sited to minimize ecological impact, with priority given to community-owned and locally controlled developments.

Subsidies for fossil fuels shall be redirected to wind energy initiatives, accelerating the transition to a carbon-free energy system. The goal is clear: a world largely powered by the wind, free from the pollution and instability of fossil fuels.