⚡ Energy and us

The electricity in your home is made in power stations, often far away, then carried to you through wires. Some is made by burning fuels, but more and more comes from moving water, wind and sunlight. Whatever the source, the power travels along cables all the way to the plug in your wall.

The sun and wind are free, clean sources of energy that never run out. Solar panels soak up sunlight and turn it straight into electricity, while wind turbines use moving air to spin huge blades that generate power. Best of all, neither one adds heat-trapping gases to the air.

Coal, oil and gas are called fossil fuels because they formed from plants and tiny creatures that lived and died millions of years ago. Buried and squeezed for ages, they became fuels we can burn for energy. The trouble is that burning them adds heat-trapping gases to the air, which is why we are looking for cleaner choices.

Recycling means turning used things like paper, glass and plastic into new ones instead of throwing them away. It saves raw materials, uses less energy than making things from scratch, and keeps waste out of the ground and the sea. Small sorting choices at home add up to a big help for the planet.