Western democracies consider themselves to be efficient, farsighted and just, prime examples of “good governance.” But in recent years, the euro and debt crises, along with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, have shattered faith in the reliability of Western institutions. Hailed as a “miracle of modern politics,” Denmark consistently earns top marks for its efficient governance, innovation and transparency, report Manfred Ertel and Gerald Traufetter at Der Spiegel. Nowhere is this more apparent than with its successful embrace of wind power, making it a role model for the world. From the depths of the 1973 oil crisis, when the Danish government asked citizens to heat only one room in winter, their well-organized democracy proved itself capable of reacting and adapting well, quickly subsidizing the development of wind power there. By 1980, the company Vestas had started, now the world’s largest manufacturer of wind turbines. New innovations continue to improve these turbines. Already 24 percent of Denmark’s consumed electricity comes from wind power, a world record. There are plans to increase this to 50 percent by 2020, and the country intends to become entirely independent of fossil fuels by 2050.
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Embracing the wind: Denmark’s recipe for a model democracy. Hailed as a “miracle of modern politics,” Denmark consistently earns top marks for its efficient governance, innovation and transparency. Nowhere is this more apparent than with its successful embrace of wind power, making it a role model for the world. Der Spiegel
