Does nuclear power provide green electricity? What's wrong with hydropower? And how will we make electricity when the oil runs out? For this month's Let's Do It campaign, Sarah Lewis finds out how we can all green our electricity.

If climate change is the biggest challenge to face mankind, then a truly sustainable form of electricity is the key to overcoming that challenge.

It is becoming more apparent oil, gas and coal are rather silly ways of powering our world. Not only are they highly polluting, but they only exist in finite quantities.

An article in New Scientist recently suggested there is growing evidence the global oil supply reached its peak in 2005 and, from here on in, we are destined to see a rapid, and terminal, decline.

We know burning fossil fuels is the primary cause of our environmental ills and, unfortunately for us, there is still enough of them left in the ground for us to tip the Earth beyond its limits of coping.

Fossil fuel-powered power stations account for 21.3% of total global greenhouse emissions, according to the Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research, a joint project of several Nordic science institutions. Fuel retrieval, processing and distribution accounts for 11.3% of emissions, while the stuff that comes out the back end of anything with a combustion engine accounts for 14%.

Yet our appetite for using these fuels is far from waning and plans to introduce renewable energy technologies are frustratingly slow.

European Union targets say the UK must generate 15% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020 - 11 years away. According to the Renewable Energy Association, currently only 5% of our electricity comes from nonfossil fuel sources.

There is light at the end of the coal mine, though. In June this year, Gordon Brown announced a £60bn renewable energy programme, including the introduction of 7,000 wind turbines over the next 12 years.

All good stuff, and even the traditionally hard to please Friends of the Earth (FoE) said the policy is "moving out of the slow lane". But they question the decision to include carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a renewable energy. The process - whereby carbon dioxide is removed from the flues of power stations and then stored in geologically stable underground spaces - is problematic.

This is because no one has actually built a working CSS plant yet.

Estimates also suggest CSS needs nearly a quarter of the output of the power station it is attached to in order to work, drastically reducing efficiency and bumping up already inflated prices for the consumer.

FoE points to German energy policy, which as well as strict, legally binding efficiency targets, includes Feed-in Tariffs, which encourage domestic electricity generation by paying homeowners a premium price for electricity exported back to the National Grid. This policy has seen the renewable industry thrive, creating thousands of jobs as well as clean and secure energy, and it is thought it will not only pay for the country's entire climate change policy, but make an extra 6bn Euros for the economy on top.

Our Government, on the other hand, tried to whack a massive tax on those who fed their own electricity back to the grid.

Aside from figuring out what makes a renewable energy source (CCS - fictional; nuclear - no CO2, but thousands of years of toxic waste; hydroelectric - are massive concrete dams and flooded valleys really green?), the other issue is base-load power. This is the electricity which exists 24 hours a day as the minimum we need to keep trundling along with our DVD players on standby and various idling gizmos and gadgets.

On the whole, the traditional renewable energy sources - the sun and wind - are not great at providing this, since they only work when it is sunny and when it is windy.

However, last year, a German experiment linked 36 renewable power plants (biogas, wind, solar photovoltaic and hydro) to provide continuous base-load, and peak load, 24 hours a day, regardless of weather conditions.

All of which backs up talk which says the solutions are out there, and we have the technology available today to solve our energy problem - we just need the will to do it.

If history teaches us anything, it is that getting all our energy from one source is dangerous and insecure and the answer lies not in a magic, quick-fix bullet, but in a broad, diverse mix of energy supplies.

Ten steps towards greening your electricity

Find out how much you use
Knowing what you use is the first step to cutting back. Get an energy audit from the Energy Savings Trust, your local council or a private firm. Alternatively, ask your electricity supplier for a smart meter, which will show you how much you are using as you are using it.

Do one thing at a time
Pick an area in which you know you waste energy, such as leaving the television on standby at night or not turning your printer off, and concentrate on changing that until you have made it habit.

Then move on to the next thing.

Gadgets are great
Whether it's solar chargers for your mobile or iPod, or a Bye Bye Standby which can turn all your equipment off standby remotely with the press of one button, don't fear technology to help you cut back your electricity habit.

Gadgets are also not great
Don't fear technology - but also don't abuse it. Do you really need a digital wifi photo frame or a small fridge just for your beer?

Save electricity and resources by not filling your life with junk.

Make your own
Solar hot water systems are becoming increasingly accessible, and reportedly save up to 80% on water-heating bills. Domestic wind turbines are less effective, unless you live on top of a large and windy hill. But could you club together with neighbours, your whole street, even, to create a linked, community electricity generating system?

Sun pipes and natural air The sun and wind don't just create electricity. Sun pipes can be used to increase the amount of natural light in a space - reducing the amount of electric light needed - and wind catchers replace the need for air-con.

Be efficient
Energy efficiency is just as important as using a green electricity source. For example, traditional light bulbs only turn 5% of the electricity they use into light. You can check the efficiency of most new electrical equipment using the EU Energy Label.

Green power
Your electricity provider should have a green tariff and you can switch just by giving them a call.

Give some encouragement
Write to your MP or electricity provider saying you want to see more investment in renewable technologies and less in ones that pollute or offer energy insecurity.

Build your own
Feeling enthusiastic? Discover how to build your own 1000-watt wind turbine online at www.instructables.com/id/DIY-1000-watt-wind-turbine. The builder claims it costs a quarter of the price of a commercial one.