Violetta Sokoła-Szewioła, PhD, DSc, Eng., prof. SUT, is Deputy Dean for Science and Cooperation at the Faculty of Mining, Safety Engineering and Industrial Automation, Silesian University of Technology. Her research focusses, among others, on issues related to underground mining activities, such as its impact on rock masses and mining terrain in seismically threatened areas. She has developed a new method to forecast seismic threats based on continuous observations of subsidence in mining areas. She also deals with monitoring of deformation and seismic activity in post-mining areas. She has been part of many research projects, including those financed by the European Union. She has authored over 130 publications and received various awards for her scientific research. She is a member of the Commission for the Protection of Mining Areas of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Since 2012, she has been assigned as the expert in the Technical Group on Coal operating at the European Commission.

Patrycja Jarczyk is a researcher and academic teacher at the Faculty of Mining, Safety Engineering and Industrial Automation, Silesian University of Technology in Gliwice. She is the author of numerous scientific publications and conference presentations. Her research interests include underground construction, rock and rock mass mechanics, as well as mining-induced seismicity. She is also actively involved in the field of geodesy and cartography, being the author and co-author of many studies. She has participated in several international projects concerning seismicity in mining and post-mining areas.