Dr Andrei Petriaev is a senior researcher in the Emperor Alexander I St. Petersburg State Transport University, Russia and the President of Russian Chapter of IGS. Dr Petriaev's research expertise is in geoecology and the geotechnics of railways and road design, with specific focus on the challenges faced in cold and arid regions.   He  has served as the conference chair for the Transportation Geotechnics and Geoecology conference in 2017, and on the scientific committee for various other conferences. Dr Anastasia Konon is an associate professor in Emperor Alexander I St. Petersburg State Transport University, Russia, where she joined in 2005. Dr Konon's research interests are primarily in road and railway engineering, with specific emphasis on the geotechnical challenges faced in cold and arid environmental conditions.  She has worked as a technician, researcher and engineer in railway design and geotechnics projects for JSC Russian Railways, and has served as the conference secretary for  Transportation Geotechnics and Geoecology conference in 2017, and on the scientific committee for various other conferences.