Through collaborations with other departments, with industry and with government, we investigate and educate about the geological and environmental issues and the challenges impacting society in Canada and globally. These include natural hazards, sustainable stewardship of mineral and energy resources, water and soil pollution, ecosystems and climate. Through training in our world-class research laboratories and field schools, we provide a diverse curriculum comprising small class size, access to professors and graduate students, mentoring and job training. We aim to prepare our graduates go on to careers in the environmental and resource industries, government research and policy, graduate programs and teaching.

Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
From our Director
The Earth and its Environment – the very place where we live and all the things we need to exist. Our natural laboratory began as a fiery ball about 4.6 billion years ago, and since then has undergone incredible change – the origin, rates and ultimate effects of which are central to all of Earth’s natural organic and inorganic systems. Strangely, something so central to our planet and our very existence is all but ignored in most pre-university curricula. Here, however, you have the opportunity to learn from world-class teachers and researchers about how the Earth and our natural and human-made environment work. With the earliest moments of the origin of the Earth through the ancient and modern processes that act on and below its surface, these processes have collectively shaped our natural environment and provided its many natural resources – resources that remain central to all living things. Through the use of a wide variety of chemical, physical and biological investigative tools, our professors are at the forefront of research unraveling the complexity and deciphering the stories as told by Earth’s natural materials and its environment. So as a BSc, MSc or PhD. student, we invite you to join this exciting field of learning as together we study Earth’s past, present and future.
Glenn A. Milne
Chair, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Ottawa ON Canada
Number of programs in Earth and Environmental Sciences
Number of students in Earth and Environmental Sciences
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Programs of study
We offer undergraduate programs leading to Bachelor of Science (BSc) degrees, as well as Master of Science (MSc) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees in Earth Sciences. Undergraduate programs are structured to allow students to obtain professional accreditations in many provinces and to enjoy careers in the minerals, energy or environmental sectors. Together with the Department of Biology, we also offer a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in Environmental Science.
News

Echoes from the deep: Decoding the Pacific’s seismic signals
Pascal Audet is diving deep into the Pacific—analyzing seismic echoes to better understand earthquakes and Earth’s inner workings.
From discovery to documentary: How ancient rocks captivated audiences
Professor Jonathan O’Neil studies 4.3-billion-year-old rocks from Nunavik that reveal Earth’s early crust formation. His work, featured in the documentary La préhistoire du Québec, brings ancient geol…
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Contact us
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
STEM Complex
150, Louis-Pasteur Private, room 336
Ottawa, ON, Canada
K1N 6N5
Tel.: 613-562-5773
[email protected]
Office hours
Monday to Friday
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Chair and program directors
Glenn Milne
Chair, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
[email protected]
Jonathan O'Neil
Director, Geology undergraduate programs and professor
[email protected]
Clément Bataille
Director, Environmental Sciences program and professor
[email protected]
Pascal Audet
Director, Graduate programs and professor
[email protected]