Conversion of the American economy towards hydrogen usage rather than hydrocarbon fuels is at the forefront of U.S. science and engineering.  This national research effort requires many different approaches for developing hydrogen production using both synthetic and biological systems, ultimately integrating with fuel cell utilization systems.  Montana is making contributions by studying hydrogen metabolizing mechanisms in nature, and investigating how they function, thus hoping to foster innovation in hydrogen production systems.  The groundwork for this research is being laid through integration of existing efforts, making key faculty hires, creating state-of-the-art facilities, and supporting graduate and undergraduate student researchers.