The Department of Earth Sciences (or DES) is one of four academic departments in the Faculty of Geosciences at Utrecht University.

The Earth Sciences contribute to answers on a wide range of societal and economic questions in areas such as:

• the natural means of existence (water, raw materials, the energy transition),
• the terrestrial environment (influenced by the changing climate, but , e.g., also searching for new methods to remediate pollutions),
• natural hazards and disasters (such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods),
• and the safe, responsible and sustainable use of terrestrial space (specifically near surface and underground space).

It is our mission to advance our understanding and prediction capability of processes that govern the evolution of System Earth. This system is Earth’s structure, together with the internal workings and surface processes, that determine its evolution and current dynamic state. Our scientists study the Earth, and other planets, on scales from the molecular to the planetary scale; from the microsecond to the geological time scale; and from its birth about 4500 million years ago to the present-day, including the origin and evolution of life. We strive to understand the processes that give rise to its immense riches of life and natural resources.

We honour James Hutton’s early insight that "from what has actually been, we have data for concluding with regard to that which is to happen thereafter".

The Geological Society of London demonstrated in an educational poster how the Earth Sciences contributes to all UN Sustainable Development Goals. The work done at DES is primarily of interest for the SGDs shown below.