Maria Cristina Vila is Associate Professor in the Department of Mining Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, where she has been teaching since 1992. BSc in Geotechnical Engineering (1988) and Mining Engineering (1990) from the University of Porto. MSc in Technology and Management of Mineral Resources (1995) by FEUP/IST. PhD in "Soil rehabilitation observed through respirometry - signal analysis in biological systems" (2005) by FEUP. Her scientific research is focused mainly on: rehabilitation of contaminated soils; bioremediation; monitoring and environmental risk analysis; technologies and waste management of the extractive industry (waste and drainage mining); mineral biotechnology.