Abstract: With rapidly mounting environmental concerns, coupled with the accelerated depletion of fossil fuels, there is a significant demand for the development of advanced technologies for the sustainable energy production and environmental remediation. Nanostructured materials with high surface areas have garnered significant interests due to their unique properties and impressive applications spanning electrocatalysis, photocatalysis, energy conversion and storage, sensing, and wastewater treatment. Recently, the Chen research team has designed and investigated a variety of functional nanomaterials. In this talk, the synthesis and surface characterization of advanced palladium, gold, copper, and graphene-based nanomaterials are presented. The electrochemical properties of these nanomaterials as well as their promising applications in hydrogen production and storage, CO2 reduction, and electrochemical sensing are highlighted. The critical roles of nanostructured surfaces in the development of advanced electrochemical technologies for clean energy and environmental applications are discussed.