In 1999, the first Gordon Research Conference on Fuel Cells was initiated by Mordecai Shelef and Shimshon Gottesfeld, responding to the rapid world-wide increase in fuel cell activities. The GRC was felt to be an ideal arena for the cross-pollination between the fundamental academic research with the more R&D focused industrial programs, allowing for an intimate exchange of ideas and research goals between universities, government institutes, and industry as well as providing a forum where students could interact with established researchers in the field. Equally important to furthering the scientic exchange between academia and industry, the GRC was also envisioned to stimulate the discussion between the traditionally separate fields of heterogeneous catalysis, materials science, mechanical engineering, and electrochemistry, all of which are integral parts in the multi-disciplinary effort to produce technologically and economically viable fuel cell applications.

This vision was also reflected in the 2nd GRC on Fuel Cells, where government researchers, academicians and a large number of students (17% of the participants) from a wide range of science and engineering disciplines had fruitful discussions with industrial researchers (32% of the participants). Our goal for the 3rd GRC on Fuel Cells has been to gather an equally interesting mix of participants and topics for this year's meeting at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island, to be held from July 29 through August 3. Starting with a historical overview of fuel cell research and future development visions, the program will lead into fundamental electrocatalysis issues ranging from biological to high-temperature systems, followed by PEM membrane and component characterization and development pathways. The second part of the conference will focus on SOFC materials development and stack design as well as at the potential of direct-hydrocarbon SOFCs. Fuel cell applications will not emerge without either the development of fuel processing or hydrogen storage technology nor without opening viable commercialization pathways, topics which will be addressed in the final part of this meeting.