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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONDAY, APRIL 20, 2006

Shell Canada and Nature Conservancy of Canada celebrate Earth Week with new commitment to training environmental leaders of the future

Calgary, Alberta –Shell Canada and the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) announced today a new commitment to the Shell Conservation Internship Program, a unique partnership between the two organizations that gives university and college students the opportunity to gain practical field experience on properties protected by NCC across the country. Shell has committed $900,000 to the program over the next three years.

“We are very pleased with this unique program,” said Tim Bancroft, Shell Canada’s vice-president of sustainable development, technology and public affairs. “NCC is a first-rate conservation organization that uses a sound scientific basis to protect important landscapes across Canada. With our financial contribution, NCC can complete the stewardship work necessary to maintain the ecological value of their properties while providing exceptional field experience for students interested in a career in conservation or the environment.”

NCC president John Lounds agrees. “Thanks to Shell’s very significant support, these interns are making a huge contribution to our land stewardship work by helping to care for areas protected by NCC from coast to coast. This program is not only boosting our conservation efforts, it also provides exceptional field experience for students interested in a career in conservation or the environment.  Together, Shell and NCC are shaping Canada’s environmental leaders of the future.”

Laura Mousseau was a program intern in 2004 and went on to become the Project Information Technician for NCC’s Ontario Region office. “The benefits I gained from my Shell Conservation Internship were practical, technical, theoretical and personal. I accomplished a lot of great things and learned some valuable skills for employment in the conservation field – knowledge that has helped me personally in my new career and that is also allowing me to contribute to the preservation of Canada’s natural heritage as a whole.”

The Shell Conservation Internship program was first launched in 2002. This year, 18 students chosen from nearly 700 applicants from across the country will begin conservation work in their respective regions in early May. Internship activities range from conducting bird inventories and removing invasive plants to mapping threatened species and teaching others about wildlife conservation.  At the end of the summer, the interns will join Shell Canada management and staff for a two-day workshop and field trip. Over the past three years, the program has supported more than 50 interns working at various sites across Canada.

Shell Canada and NCC have been “natural partners” in land conservation projects for nearly 25 years. As NCC’s largest corporate supporter, Shell has donated more than $4 million in financial resources, volunteer support and land and mineral rights, resulting in major achievements for conservation in Canada. A major donation in 1992 facilitated the creation of the Mount Broadwood Heritage Conservation Area in southeast British Columbia – a valuable wilderness home to many threatened species including Grizzly Bears and Bighorn Sheep.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada is a national non-profit organization that takes a business-like approach to the conservation of plant and wildlife habitat. Its plan of action is to build partnerships and develop creative conservation solutions with individuals, corporations, community groups, conservation groups, or government bodies that share its passion for our natural world. Since 1962, NCC and its supporters have conserved more than 765,000 hectares of land on more than 1,900 properties across Canada.

Shell Canada Limited is a large integrated petroleum company in Canada with its headquarters in Calgary. Supported by a number of corporate departments, the company has three major businesses. Exploration & Production is responsible for the exploration, production and marketing of natural gas and natural gas liquids from extensive onshore and offshore operations. Oil Sands includes a major integrated bitumen mining and upgrading operation in the Athabasca area of Alberta and Shell Canada’s Peace River in situ bitumen business. Oil Products manufactures, distributes and markets refined petroleum products across Canada. Shell’s three refineries convert crude oil into low sulphur gasoline and diesel fuel, aviation fuels, solvents, lubricants, asphalt and heavy fuel oils. Shell Canada supplies these products to retail, commercial and road transport markets through its Canada-wide network of Shell- and private-branded retail and cardlock sites.