Complete oxidation of organic compounds coupled to direct extracellular electron transfer to insoluble electron acceptors is the hallmark physiological characteristic of Geobacter species.  Microorganisms in this genus are important agents in the bioremediation of subsurface environments contaminated with metals and/or organic compounds and have the capacity to produce electricity in microbial fuel cells with the highest current densities yet reported for pure cultures.  The availability of pure cultures of environmentally relevant isolates of Geobacter allowed the development of a wide range of analytical tools and Omic platforms. The implementation of this systemic approach is unraveling the biology of this group of microorganisms and is also being used to optimize their practical application in bioremediation and electricity generation. Using both genome and transcriptome analysis we were able to identify important components of the outer membrane that are instrumental in electron transfer at the cell-solid electron acceptor interface and thus model electron flow to the outside of the cell. We also used the genome-based in silico model to develop ways of improving the electron generation capabilities of Geobacter species. For example, a strain was engineered for higher rates of respiration.  This approach also allowed us to devise metabolic engineering strategies for the oxidation of electron-dense bio-based substrates such as glycerol, a major byproduct of the biodiesel industry. We have also successfully improved the electron transfer capabilities of G. sulfurreducens by overexpressing the outer-surface c-type cytochrome OmcS. These results suggest that Geobacter strains can be optimized via genetic engineering for practical applications.