It is, therefore, believed that international cooperation in continental scientific drilling is an essential component for a responsible management strategy for the Earth's natural resources and environment.

[3] Research areas within sustainable georesources include the nature of the deep biosphere and its relation to geologic processes such as hydrocarbon maturation, ore deposition and energy resources, the origin and evolution of sedimentary basins and hydrocarbon resources, and the role of various geologic settings, including volcanoes and plate boundaries, in ore deposit formation.

The transfer of heat and mass, i.e. magma, hot fluids, groundwater and sediment, controls the concentration of metals and hydrocarbons as well as providing renewable geothermal energy resources.

[3] ICDP has accepted many proposals related to formation, potential hazard, and mitigation associated with fault boundaries, volcanoes, impact structures and plate margins.

[5] Currently, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States and UNESCO are members of the ICDP.