With ERIS we aim to reconstruct the evolution of galaxies like the Milky Way using the phylogenetic trees, which are already extensively used in other evolutionary studies on Earth. Since trees are mathematical structures and graphs, with ERIS we are consolidating an interdisciplinary collaboration between astronomers, biologists and mathematicians, in order to achieve our goal. We will reconstruct the evolution of the Milky Way, our main galactic laboratory, by building and interpreting phylogenetic trees that are appropriate for astronomical data. To do so, we will simulate the evolution of galaxies, where we know their shared history. We will also use observed data, which will allow us to learn to deal with uncertainties, and ultimately help us to constrain the theory of galaxy evolution.