ABSTRACT
Brandenburg occupies second place in Germany with regard to installed wind power capacity. The northeastern federal state has faced a strong organized movement against wind power with more than 100 local protest groups. This chapter tracks the rise of the social movement against wind turbines and provides details on its organizational form, its discourses and activities. The chapter discusses how protest unfolded within the formal planning system, how the umbrella organization scaled-up protest to the sub-national level and which support they received. The chapter is based on qualitative research including interviews and focus group discussions. Despite strong levels of protest, the Brandenburg government did not yield to the movement’s demands, but instead endorsed their support of developing wind turbines. The chapter provides a detailed case study of local protest in Brandenburg’s northern planning region of Prignitz-Oberhavel that has one of the largest numbers of wind turbines in Brandenburg.
