WESD Wind Energy Science Discussions WESD Wind Energ. Sci. Discuss. 2366-7621 Göttingen, Germany 10.5194/wes-2023-174 Grand Challenges in Social Aspects of Wind Energy Development Kitzing Lena https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8627-7558 1 Rudolph David 1 Nyborg Sophie 1 Solman Helena https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0183-7120 2 Cronin Tom 1 Hübner Gundula 3 Gill Elizabeth 4 Dykes Katherine https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5734-3122 1 Tegen Suzanne 5 Kirkegaard Julia Kirch https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9340-7202 1 Department of Wind and Energy Systems, Technical University of Denmark, Risø Campus, Roskilde, 4000, Denmark Department of Social Sciences, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, 6705, The Netherlands Institute of Psychology Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, MSH Medical School Hamburg University of Applied Sciences and Medical University, Hamburg, 20457, Germany Accelerated Deployment and Decision Support Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Flatirons Campus, Arvada, Colorado, 80007, USA Center for the New Energy Economy, Colorado State University, Powerhouse Energy Campus, Fort Collins, Colorado, 80523, USA 17 01 2024 2024 1 13 Copyright: © 2024 Lena Kitzing et al. 2024 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This article is available from https://wes.copernicus.org/preprints/wes-2023-174/ The full text article is available as a PDF file from https://wes.copernicus.org/preprints/wes-2023-174/wes-2023-174.pdf

Social aspects are gaining traction in wind energy research. Increasing local opposition to wind energy projects is just one symptom of deeper-rooted challenges in the further expansion of the technology. A recent publication by Kirkegaard et al. (2023a) lays out the grand challenges related to the complex interactions between society and wind energy technology and outlines a research agenda for wind energy research from a socio-technical perspective. This article discusses these challenges in the context of a more technologically focused research audience. We begin by describing the role of social sciences in wind energy research, arguing for the diverse set of insights, research topics, and value that they can add, going beyond outdated concepts of social acceptance (such as NIMBY), and providing solutions for public engagement and planning processes, just ownership structures and value-based design. We discuss social grand challenges in five areas: (1) Project planning & spatial relations, (2) Wind turbine design & scalability, (3) Grid integration, roles & responsibilities, (4) General public perception of the technology, (5) Energy policy to support system transformation. We conclude by reflecting how social sciences and technical sciences can be better integrated to jointly advance wind energy research into a new interdisciplinary era that is able to provide holistic solutions for a transition to carbon-neutrality.