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Devin: What is your superpower?

Kevin: Persistence and flexibility.

What if we could double the energy output of existing wind farms without using more land? Kevin Wolf, CEO and Co-founder of Wind Harvest, has been working to make this vision a reality. His team has developed vertical axis wind turbines that harvest turbulent winds near the ground, a resource previously considered unusable.

The idea isn’t new; vertical axis turbines have been attempted for decades but failed to overcome engineering challenges. “The turbulent wind has stopped all other technologies from being able to make use of it,” Kevin explained. “It took a long time, a lot of money, and a lot of prototyping of full-scale prototypes…to finally have this product ready for the market.”

The key innovation is a patented hinge system that solves a critical weakness of vertical axis turbines—mechanical stress on the blades. “Vertical axis turbines have failed for decades,” Kevin said. “The problem is they rotate 15 million times a year…every rotation, there’s a pull with a blade like an airplane wing and a push as it comes around the other side. That connection point breaks…[but] if you put a hinge, all that micro movement is taken up in the hinge.”

The potential impact of Wind Harvest’s turbines is enormous. By placing them on existing wind farms, they can double the energy output per acre in ideal locations without requiring new infrastructure or land. “We can double the wind farm energy output with our turbines,” Kevin emphasized. He noted that this approach also avoids the costs and environmental impacts of developing new wind farms. “It’s a much faster way of developing new wind farms…as opposed to taking raw land, new habitat, and converting that into a wind farm.”

Wind Harvest is raising capital through a regulated crowdfunding campaign on StartEngine. This effort allows small investors to support clean energy innovation. Kevin explained the unique challenge of funding such groundbreaking work: “There is a lot of doubt at the level of the venture capitalists…they want us to finish the third-party certification.” In the meantime, crowdfunding has allowed Wind Harvest to bridge the gap and move closer to commercialization.

You can find more about their campaign on StartEngine (Top 15 in amount raised on StartEngine.) and be part of an investment opportunity to drive clean energy forward.

tl;dr:

Kevin Wolf’s vertical axis wind turbines harvest turbulent winds near the ground, doubling wind farm efficiency.

Wind Harvest’s patented hinge system solves a key flaw in traditional vertical axis turbines.

Deploying these turbines on existing wind farms reduces costs, accelerates permitting, and avoids new land use.

Kevin attributes his success to persistence, flexibility, and consensus-building skills honed over decades.

Wind Harvest is raising capital via crowdfunding to finalize certification and commercialize their turbines.

How to Develop Persistence and Flexibility As a Superpower

Kevin attributes his success to persistence and flexibility. “I do not like to not have something succeed,” he shared, adding, “I’ve learned over time that big things take a long time to do.” His training as a river guide and evolutionary ecologist shaped his ability to adapt. “You learn to take new data, change your mind, adjust your hypothesis,” he explained. By pairing this adaptability with relentless persistence, Kevin has overcome significant obstacles in his career.

Kevin shared a story from his days at Wolfen Associates, where he helped the city of Sausalito reach consensus on a fire department expansion. After the city’s initial proposal failed, Kevin facilitated community meetings, allowing dissenting voices to be heard and their concerns addressed. By incorporating feedback and revising the proposal, the city council gained overwhelming public support in a re-vote. This experience highlights Kevin’s ability to persist through challenges while remaining flexible to new perspectives.

Tips for Developing the Superpower:

Embrace persistence by committing to long-term goals, even when progress feels slow.

Stay flexible by adapting to new data and revising plans when necessary.

Practice active listening to fully understand others’ perspectives.

Help others clarify their thoughts by rephrasing and restating their concerns.

By following Kevin’s example and advice, you can make persistence and flexibility a skill. With practice and effort, you could make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Remember, however, that research into success suggests that building on your own superpowers is more important than creating new ones or overcoming weaknesses. You do you!

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Guest Profile

Kevin Wolf (he/him):

CEO and Co-founder, Wind Harvest International

About Wind Harvest International: Wind Harvest is a U.S.-based renewable energy technology company developing and selling industrial-scale vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) systems designed for deployment in turbulent wind resources close to the ground. ts patented Wind Harvester technology is engineered to operate efficiently in a wide range of wind conditions, with a compact footprint, low profile, and highly durable design.

Website: windharvest.com

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/windharvest

Other URL: startengine.com/offering/wind-harvest

Biographical Information: Kevin Wolf is the co-founder and CEO of Wind Harvest International, where he’s spent nearly two decades advancing utility-scale vertical-axis wind turbines for turbulent, mid-level winds. He facilitated the engineering team through Technology Readiness Level milestones, oversaw R&D on the coupled-vortex effect, hired key engineers and team members and helped take the company from early grants and Series A through testing of multiple prototypes. Starting in 2019 when he became CEO again, he has steered capital strategy—closing investor rounds, running multiple crowdfunding raises, converting company debt to equity in 2022, and completing audits.

Beyond Wind Harvest, Wolf brings a long record of environmental leadership and civic work. A UC Davis graduate in Evolution & Ecology, he launched his career with Friends of the River and later founded Wolf & Associates, facilitating multi-stakeholder, consensus-based watershed and environmental solutions across California. He chairs the California Clean Money Action Fund to reduce the power of money in affecting elections and legislation, co-founded the pioneering N Street Cohousing community in Davis, and has served on numerous local boards and commissions.

LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/kevin-wolf

Personal Facebook Profile: facebook.com/kevin.wolf.9256

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