Despite decades of research towards alternatives, fossil fuels account for more than 80% of global energy consumption today. Facing dwindling natural resources and burgeoning ecological consequences, we are challenged with charting a sustainable course for modern life using renewable energy sources. This will require safe and reliable methods of converting, storing, and using energy that can compete with hydrocarbon fuels extracted from the Earth. While the optimal solutions may vary depending on geographical location and availability of alternative energy-enabling materials, one major proposed avenue is the use of hydrogen as an energy carrier and hydrogen fuel cells as a primary method of converting energy into electricity. The integrated system of hydrogen production, storage, and utilization on a societal scale is aspirationally referred to as the hydrogen economy.