Francisco José Sánchez-Sesma is an Engineer who specializing in the local site effects of surface geology on earthquake intensity. He was director of the Institute of Engineering at UNAM, and was Research Director of Mexican Petroleum Institute. Professor Sánchez-Sesma is a former president of Mexican Academy of Engineering and a member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences.  He graduated from the National Preparatory School and received his Masters and Doctorate degrees from the Faculty of Engineering of UNAM. His research concerns the propagation of seismic waves, particularly the effects of the conditions of the local topography and geology on the characteristics of earthquakes, experimental verification and mathematical modeling. He has undertaken visiting professor ships in Paris, Milan, Southern California and Kyoto where he has taught courses and seminars and conducted research