The Azores archipelago in the North Atlantic is situated in a leaky transform environment between the Gloria Fault, which is part of the European-African plate boundary, in the east and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the west. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge looses its pronounced rift valley within the latitudes occupied by the Azores islands and a second ultra-slow spreading ridge called the Terceira Rift takes over most of the rifting activity. Close to the southeastern end of the Terceira Rift the Oriental Group of the Azores is located, i.e. the islands of Santa Maria and Sao Miguel. Sao Miguel and its surroundings have been the most seismically active place in the whole archipelago over historical time and hosted a couple of volcanic eruptions with the last offshore one occurring at the beginning of the last century. The two most productive volcanic systems are Fogo and Furnas volcanoes in the centre of the island and they both encompass the most seismically active area, called the Congro area. Fogo volcano is also base of a geothermal power plant which has been implemented at the end of the 1980s. In the last decade considerable effort has been taken to expand the monitoring network for earthquakes and volcanoes and understand the structure of the island, its geodynamical situation and the source of the natural hazards occurring there. The presentation will give an overview of parameters and experiences gained from the seismological work involved in this, which are currently further explored by the european VOLUME project.