Angry in the Great White North

I have nothing against Marqui Inc.  I'm sure Marqui consists of a bunch of committed professionals trying to do the best on behalf of their clients:

Marqui Inc. is a privately held Vancouver, BC based software company. Marqui Inc. was established in 2000, and now employs over 50 talented designers, developers, sales, and marketing professionals.

Marqui enables customers to stand out from the crowd by providing innovative web marketing technology that helps align Sales and Marketing teams and execute closed-loop marketing activities. Marqui’s on-demand platform empowers customers to control their online brand and messaging, generate leads and revenue, and evaluate and optimize online campaigns.

Marqui is closely linked to the David Suzuki Foundation's online presence.  The IP address for the Foundation resolves to the host name marqui.com, which in turn owns the SSL certificate for davidsuzuki.org.

Again, that's all good.

But don't you think the David Suzuki Foundation might be concerned that the same group that is managing David Suzuki's "online brand and messaging" is also taking money from oil sands projects?

Energy & Gas:

BC Hydro Power Pioneers

Canadian Oil and Sands Trust

Enerflex

Nexen

The Canadian Oil and Sands Trust:

Canadian Oil Sands Trust provides a pure investment opportunity in Alberta's oil sands through its 36.74% interest in the Syncrude Project. Syncrude operates oil sands mines and an upgrading facility that produces a light, sweet crude oil. Canadian Oil Sands is an open-ended investment trust, managed by Canadian Oil Sands Limited, and trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol COS.UN.

Enerflex:

Enerflex is a leading provider of:

• natural gas compression, power generation and process equipment for either sale, rent or lease;
• hydrocarbon production and processing facilities;

Nexen:

Nexen is a Canadian-based, global energy company growing value responsibly. We are strategically positioned in some of the world's most exciting regions: the North Sea, deep-water Gulf of Mexico, Middle East, offshore West Africa and the Canadian Athabasca oil sands.

But then maybe David Suzuki doesn't mind if his online marketing team is making  profits by helping the oil sand developers market their position that oil sands development must be allowed to expand.  The obvious reason is that without oil sand developers, David Suzuki might be out of a job as a self-righteous environmental gadlfy.

But perhaps a less obvious but potentially more interesting reason has something to do with the fact that Nexen is listed as a contributor to the David Suzuki Foundation:

David Suzuki Foundation Annual Report 2005:

Our Supporters / Nature Defenders

Nexen Inc.

In the same year that Nexen was listed by David Suzuki on his list of "Nature Defenders", Nexen announced that it was planning a major expansion of it's oil sands production:

In 2005, we announced our plan to duplicate Long Lake by developing Phase 2. While we are planning on sanctioning this project in late 2008, the ultimate timing depends on achieving sufficient production history from Phase 1 and receiving clarity on fiscal and regulatory policies related to oil sands development and climate change. We plan to sequentially develop our resource with additional 60,000 bbls/d (30,000 bbls/d net) phases using the same technology and design as Long Lake and to increase synthetic crude oil production to 240,000 bbls/d (120,000 bbls/d net) over the next decade.

But expansion of oil production is a bad thing, according to the David Suzuki Foundation:

Prime Minister Jean Chretien has already offered substantial expansion of Alberta's oil sands to U.S. President George Bush.

"If Canada agrees to boost its oil and gas production to meet U.S. demands, it will cause our greenhouse gas emissions to rise and worsen climate change," said Gerry Scott, Director of the David Suzuki Foundation's Climate Change Campaign. "Ottawa is putting misguided U.S. energy policy ahead of Canada's international commitments on climate change. For example, the emissions from the production of a 150,000 barrel-a-day oil sands operation is equal to the greenhouse gas emissions of 1.35 million cars."

So Nexen makes money from oil sands production to sell to the United States, a country that has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol.  Nexen takes that money made from selling oil and donates some of it to the David Suzuki Foundation, which bestows Nexen the title of "Nature Defender".  The David Suzuki Foundation takes that money and gives some of it to Marqui to help it market the anti-oil message.  Marqui, meanwhile, is simultaneously taking money from Nexen to promote the message that oil sands production is a great thing, especially if you want to make money.

Maybe this has less to do with the environment and more to do with David Suzuki being a player of sorts in the oil industry.  He makes noises, the oil companies pay him off, he alters his message in some way and then sells enviro-friendly titles with his name attached.  The oil companies tolerate, even encourage, David Suzuki's environmental message since Suzuki has to be credible in his role as environmental crusader if the oil companies are going to get their money's worth from the labels like "Nature Defender" that they buy from Suzuki.  Meanwhile, same public relations firm handles messaging for both sides, making sure that the agreed upon positions are communicated properly.  After all, neither side profits if the deal were to fall apart.

That's cynical.  Maybe too cynical even for me.

According to David Suzuki, it is the politicians who are in denial and must be put in jail for not believing the "truth".  Which truth?  Nexen's truth?  Suzuki's truth?  But the same money is paying for both, and the same people are marketing both messages.

Is there any truth here at all?  Or just manipulators playing games and making profits?

Like I said, I just don't understand why anyone listens to David Suzuki.