The International Symposium on Metal-Hydrogen Systems, Fundamentals and Applications, was held at Banff, Alberta, Canada, September 2-7 1990: the second in a series which has combined the pure and the applied science pertaining to research on metal-hydrogen (M-H) systems and a successor to the series of conferences and symposia, in this field, going back to 1968. Development in the M-H field, as exemplified by the presentations at the Banff Symposium, showed in the level of sophistication of the science being carried out and the "frontier" contacts being made with other research areas. The most prominent development at the Symposium, and a very positive one, was the emergence of the nickel/metal-hydride rechargeable battery as an application of M-H systems technology and one that was poised for market launch.