Francisco Fernandes F. Fernandes is a skilled Engineer, with over 22 years of experience in practice and research in civil engineering. After an internship at the 'Sociedade de Empreitadas e Trabalhos Hidráulicos' he began his career in 1997 in ¿¿budgeting and cost control at Engil. He was also a controller and responsible for several management areas at Eng. Luís Gomes company. He worked as a project manager in the Marques, Engil and Eng. Luís Gomes companies, and as director of production. Senior Member of the Institution of Portuguese Engineers has a master's degree in Business Administration and Management from the University of the Azores (2003), is Qualified Expert in the Energy Certification System (SCE-RCCTE), ADENE (Agency for Energy and Technical Superior of Safety and Hygiene of Work - Level 5). Other activities include participation in various courses, seminars and vocational training actions in the fields of engineering, safety and hygiene at work, energy certification and management, as a designer and qualified expert of the energy certification system. Presently, since 2012 he is Head of the Regional Laboratory of Civil Engineering in Azores. Currently, he is a board member of the Portuguese Seismic Engineer Society (SPES) and a member of the Fiscal Council of the Fund for the Development of Construction Sciences. As president of the organizing committee, he was responsible for several scientific events, namely the 10th Portuguese Congress of Seismology and Earthquake Engineering, the 16th Portuguese Geotechnical Congress, the 6th Luso-Spanish Geotechnical Conference and the I International Workshop on Natural Hazards. Currently, is in Organizing Committee of the International Workshop "Natural Hazards - Hydrological Risks" (LREC, Pico Island, Azores, May 2019). Ana Malheiro A. Malheiro is a skilled Geologist with 34 years of experience in practice and research in engineering geology, geotechnics and geological hazards. She studied Geology at the Faculty Sciences of the University of Lisbon in 1983 and received her master's degree at the University of Azores in Volcanology and Geological Risks in 2002. She works since 1984 in the Regional Laboratory of Civil Engineering where she responsible for the areas of engineering geology, in situ geological and geotechnical investigations, geotechnics and geological risks. She was Head of the Division of Ports (1995/1998) and since 1998 until now, she is Director of Services of the Department of Geotechnics and Exploration. She participated in several Coordination Commissions for Management Plans (namely Regional Plans and Municipal Plans). In addition, was also invited assistant lecturer (1985/1990; 1996/1999) at Azores University. She participated in several organizing committees for National and international Congresses and Workshops, as well as Scientific Commissions ( e.g. 15th World Conference on Seismic Engineering, Lisbon, 2012, 5th, 9th and 10th National Congress of Seismology and Seismic Engineering, respectively in 2001, 2014 and 2016; 16th National Congress of Geotechnics, 2018). Currently, is in Organizing Committee of the International Workshop "Natural Hazards - Hydrological Risks" (LREC, Pico Island, Azores, May 2019). She has been co-authored several publications in indexed journals, conference proceedings/full papers, book chapters, technical, professional papers and technical reports. She co-edited 1 special volume "Volcanic Rocks" (Taylor & Francis). In general, technical reports they focus on the field of in situ geological-geotechnical investigations to support the larger constructions built in the Azores region, coastal erosion, slope stability; as well as, the evaluation of resources in quarries, evaluation of geological and/or geotechnical problems and the assessment of geological hazards. She has integrated some research projects in the fields of geotechnical characterization of volcanic materials, stability of slopes, monitoring of unstable areas, etc. Helder I. Chaminé H. I. Chaminé is a skilled Geologist and Professor of Engineering Geosciences at School of Engineering (ISEP) of the Polytechnic of Porto, with over 29 years' experience in multidisciplinary geosciences research, consultancy and practice. He studied geological engineering and geology (BSc, 1990) at the Universities of Aveiro and Porto (Portugal), respectively. He received his PhD in geology at the University of Porto in 2000 and spent his postdoctoral research in applied geosciences at the University of Aveiro (2001-2003). In 2011 he received his Habilitation (DSc) in geosciences from Aveiro University. Before joining academy, he worked over a decade in international projects for mining, geotechnics and groundwater industry and/or academia related to geodynamics andregional geology, hard-rock hydrogeology and water resources, engineering geosciences and applied geomorphology, rock engineering and georesources. His research interests span over fundamental to applied fields: GIS mapping techniques for applied geology, structural geology and regional geology, engineering geosciences and rock engineering, slope geotechnics, mining geology and hydrogeomechanics, hard-rock hydrogeology, exploration hydrogeology, urban groundwater and hydromineral resources. He has interests on mining geoheritage, history of cartography, military geosciences and higher-education dissemination, skills and core values. Presently, he is Head of the Laboratory of Cartography and Applied Geology (LABCARGA ISEP), Senior Researcher at Centre GeoBioTec U.Aveiro and Centre IDL U.Lisbon, as well as belongs to the executive board of the MSc+BSc Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering (OE+EUR-ACE Label) and the Department of Geotechnical Engineering (ISEP). Currently, he belongs to the board of the Portuguese Geotechnical Society (SPG) and IAH - Portuguese Chapter. He was a board member of the APGeom - Portuguese Association of Geomorphologists (2009-2013). He was consultant and or responsible over 70 projects of rock engineering, applied geology, hydrogeomechanics, slope geotechnics, mining geology, exploration hydrogeology, hard-rock hydrogeology, water resources, urban groundwater and applied mapping (Mozambique, Portugal, and Spain). He has been co-authored over 200 publications in indexed journals, conference proceedings/full papers, book chapters, technical and professional papers. He co-edited over 13 special volumes, as well as is presently evolved in editing themed issues for 3 international journals (Geotechnical Research ICE, Springer Nature Applied Sciences, Water MDPI). He has a wide activity as a referee for several international journals. He served as invited Expert Evaluator of Bologna Geoscience programme for DGES (Portugal) and Scientific Projects Evaluation for NCST (Kazakhstan) and NRF RISA (South Africa), as well as Coordinator of "Geology on Summer/Ciência Viva" programme at ISEP for geosciences dissemination. He has been also active with teaching and supervising of many PhD, MSc and undergraduate students. He has been on the editorial board, among others, of Arabian Journal of Geosciences (SSG+Springer), Hydrogeology Journal (IAH+Springer), Geotechnical Research (ICE), Springer Nature Applied Sciences (Springer), Mediterranean Geoscience Reviews (Springer), Geosciences (MDPI), Revista Geotecnia (Portugal), and Geología Aplicada a la Ingeniería y al Ambiente (Argentina). Currently, is co-chair of the International Conference "Geoethics and Groundwater Management" (IAH+IAPG, Porto, May 2020) and in scientific committee of the 3rd International Workshop on Natural Hazards - NATHAZ'21 (Terceira Island, Azores, May 2021).
