Visuals that Portray a Wind Farm

Abstract

John Debes, the founder of the IVLA, argues that our first language is body language – visual and tactile information together helping us make sense of the world (Debes, 1972). During research of the public response to what could be the first freshwater offshore wind farm in North America, on Lake Erie, participants have a distinctly embodied understanding of environmental information. Their oral stories, drawings, and written responses reflect use of visual literacy that personifies wind turbines, the lake, fish and birds, and Earth’s processes as human in nature. In return, participants’ perception of the wind farm’s features, size, and distance is skewed toward an immediate, physical presence. Between anthropomorphism and embodiment, what the general population sees as important in a large-scale sustainable energy project is very different from what is shown in technical documentation from scientists, engineers, and policymakers, complicating public decision making.