This keynote lecture demonstrates how the introduction of new technologies impact daily life. It explains how these trends can be applied to the future implementation of hydrogen and fuel cells (H2/FC) into reality with the support of environment friendly and economically advanced materials processing and design.

This lecture explains, that today’s Energy Balance, especially in the production and distribution of electricity, is rather uneconomical worldwide, due to high flaring and transmission losses. Example figures from Germany are released. This situation can be overcome by a decentralized energy system, utilizing new energy creating materials and -systems to use hydrogen as an energy carrier utilizing fuel cells to produce electricity. The implementation of nano structured materials and new photocatalysts in this decentralized production of hydrogen and in increasing the efficiency of fuel cells will further accelerate the progress.

A worldwide new attitude regarding the production, distribution and use of energy is unavoidable. Only if scientists, designers, engineers, craftsmen and also the personnel in education, administration, media and governmental positions – but also the final consumers - , will prove their cases, environmentally and economically, today’s known obstacles in the efficiency of worldwide electricity production can be improved by the implementation of hydrogen and fuel cells on a big scale.

This lecture is based on fourteen years personal international first hand-experience in the development of the commercialization of the emerging hydrogen and fuel cells industry worldwide.