Power with People: WIMBY & JustWind4All Joint Final Event

On 15 October 2025, the projects WIMBY – Wind In My BackYard and JustWind4All joined forces in Brussels for their Joint Final Event, “Power with People: Local Tools for Just Wind Futures.”

Hosted within the framework of the EURegionsWeek “Close to You” programme, the event gathered over 70 participants from across Europe — including policymakers, researchers, industry representatives, civil society, and local stakeholders — for a full day dedicated to inclusive, fair, and effective wind energy deployment.

Morning Session: Policy Breakfast and Joint Discussions

The day opened with an exclusive policy breakfast, where policymakers from EU, national, and regional levels discussed the policy recommendations developed by both projects. The conversation revealed strong interest in how local engagement and participatory tools can support the implementation of EU goals at the regional level.

The public session then followed, opening with “Exploring the context — Why bridging the gap between EU policy and local reality matters now.”

After short, focused presentations from WIMBY and JustWind4All, the morning continued with an insightful panel discussion:
“What do implementers need to plan just and effective wind?”, featuring speakers from WindEurope, The Nature Conservancy, ICLEI, and the Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition.

Panelists reflected on the challenges of moving from data and mapping to real implementation.

“Mapping is not a the difficult part — the challenge is how to make it happen sustainably, for the planet and for the people,” one speaker noted, highlighting that simplification, when done right, can empower communities rather than deregulate processes.

The session closed with a co-creation dialogue, inviting participants to share how EU-funded projects like WIMBY and JustWind4All can better support their work. Insights from this exchange will feed into future collaboration and policy learning activities.

Afternoon Session: Interactive Workshops and Demonstrations

The afternoon shifted to a more hands-on mode, with three interactive parallel sessions:

Interactive Maps (led by WIMBY) – exploring spatial data, social acceptance, and environmental impacts;
Participation & Wind Energy Development (led by JustWind4All) – focusing on community benefits, ownership, and trust;
WIMBY’s 3D Immersive Environment – an engaging demo of how VR technology can foster understanding of local wind planning.

Participants had the chance to test project tools, discuss real-world applications, and exchange perspectives on how participatory approaches can strengthen trust and dialogue around renewable energy.

Wrapping Up: Shared Learning and Future Paths

The event closed in a collaborative spirit, celebrating three years of shared research and fieldwork among the two projects (with a special mention of WENDY, another sister project that recently concluded.)

By bringing together technical innovation, policy insights, and local participation, the event underscored one message above all: