Joanna Brzeszcz completed her Ph.D. in environmental science at the Jagiellonian University in 2017. She currently works as Assistant Professor at the Department of Microbiology at the Oil and Gas Institute –National Research Institute in Kraków, Poland. Her research focuses on environmental and soil microbiology and biotechnology, with particular emphasis on soil–microbiota interactions in hydrocarbon-contaminated areas. She studies the adaptation of microorganisms to high hydrocarbon loads and their application in the efficient bioremediation of contaminated soils.