Overview

The Free State of Bavaria has the ambitious goal of achieving complete climate neutrality by 2050. The State Agency for Energy and Climate Protection (LENK) is helping Bavaria to achieve this goal. It is actively involved in implementing the political guidelines for the energy transition and climate protection. In doing so, it acts on the one hand as a competence and advisory centre for the Free State of Bavaria and on the other hand as a driving force for the implementation of climate policy measures. A particular focus is on the expansion of renewable energies, especially wind energy. Within the framework of the Bavarian wind energy offensive "Aufwind", the acceptance of wind power plants is to be increased and the expansion of wind energy in Bavaria is to be promoted through improved framework conditions. So-called regional "wind carers" (“WindkümmerInnen”) are to advise selected municipalities on the initiation of wind power projects and support them in their implementation.

In addition, the association C.A.R.M.E.N. e.V. ("The Central Agrar-Resources Marketing- and Energy-Network"), founded in 1992 by the Free State of Bavaria, supports the development of wind energy in Bavaria. It is part of the Centre of Excellence for Renewable Resources (KoNaRo) and has been actively supporting the implementation of the goals of the energy transition since 2012. Since access to information for interested citizens and mayors who want to start a wind power project in Bavaria is not yet centrally regulated, the two organisations decided to participate in a DTLab Challenge. The challenge, called "WindkümmerInnen - A Website for Wind Power", aimed to design a central information platform on the topic of "Wind Power Plants in Bavaria".

Problem

Obtaining information on the construction of wind power plants in Bavaria is a complicated process that rarely leads to satisfactory results for interested parties. Moreover, in order to obtain expert and targeted advice on wind energy, it is usually unavoidable to call the LENK for information. This deters many citizens and mayors from dealing sufficiently with the topic or starting their own wind power projects. This is despite the fact that the expansion of wind power plants is urgently needed in the coming years to achieve Bavaria’s climate goals.

In addition to providing comprehensive information to those interested in wind power projects, it is also important to convince ordinary citizens of the benefits of renewable energies and to strengthen the general acceptance of wind power projects within communities. Otherwise, the current opaque information situation can easily lead to projects being prevented or abandoned due to a lack of or incorrect information.

Solution

An interdisciplinary team of the HM Hochschule München University of Applied Sciences, consisting of ten students from the courses Business Administration, Computer Science and Design, designed a solution to this problem with the support of DTLab and Amazon Web Services (AWS).

In constant consultation with the LENK and C.A.R.M.E.N. e.V., the students developed an interactive web application for citizens and mayors to provide correct information on the topic and to independently create and manage wind power projects. During the development process, the students applied the methods Scrum and Working Backwards.

The final product, a website, consists of two parts. One part contains information and is accessible to all interested parties. A second part enables mayors to independently create, edit and manage projects for the construction of wind power plants. In this way, they can always keep their municipality up to date on projects and publicly refute false reports. Through the link of the new platform to the Energy Atlas of Bavaria, mayors can also determine the best possible location for their wind turbine.

The complete website contains several sub-pages and features. These include a general information page, a publications page, a factsheet, an integrated site search, an FAQ with the most important questions about wind power, an interactive timeline as well as a ready-made action plan for the precise planning of wind power projects.

Customer experience

The following example illustrates how exactly the platform is to be used in everyday life: A mayor expresses the wish to turn away from coal energy and to build a wind power plant. To this end, he/she searches for arguments on the internet to inform his/her community about the switch in a targeted and fact-based manner. With the help of the website, he/she now not only can inform himself/herself and his/her citizens comprehensively but can also independently create and manage wind power projects. This creates complete transparency and acceptance within his/her community, so that nothing stands in the way of switching to renewable energies.

Keywan Pour-Sartip, staff member at C.A.R.M.E.N e.V, is also convinced by the new concept of the HM students: "As a result of this collaborative effort, we have succeeded in creating a platform that provides mayors with appropriate access to information and helps to support them in their wind energy projects."

Next steps

The final product was handed over to the LENK and C.A.R.M.E.N. e.V. as a fully functional prototype. For the future, the students recommend that the organisations expand the website with features such as a chatbot. In addition, physical sources of information on the topic, e.g., in the form of brochures and the development of an app would be other conceivable steps to inform more people about wind power.