There is compelling evidence of a direct relationship and a coordinated communications strategy between the Ethical Oil Institute and the CPC, including mirrored messaging from the Ethical Oil Institute and Conservative Cabinet Ministers, and crossover between the Ethical Oil Institute staff and Ministerial staff he Ethical Oil Institute claims that it is an independent, grassroots organization. It states that its website, EthicalOil.org, “began as a blog created by Alykhan Velshi” in July 2011 to promote ideas espoused by journalist Ezra Levant in his book Ethical Oil: The Case for Canada’s Oil Sands owever, the organization’s Articles of Association name prominent pro-oil sands lawyer Thomas Ross, and Ezra Levant himself, as its two officers s for Alykhan Velshi, immediately prior to “creating” EthicalOil.org, Mr. Velshi was Director of Communications and Parliamentary Affairs for then-Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney. Just months after launching EthicalOil.org, he returned to government, accepting a senior position with the Prime Minister’s Office athryn Marshall took over from Mr. Velshi as spokesperson for Ethical Oil in September 2011.1 Ms. Marshall also has Conservative Party connections and is married to Hamish Marshall, a former manager of strategic planning in Stephen Harper’s PMO. Mr. Marshall’s company, Go Newclear Productions, both created and hosted websites for both Ethical Oil and Conservative cabinet ministers Joe Oliver, Pierre Poilievre and Jason Kenney. There are indications that these web-sites were programmed by Travis Freeman, who was simultaneously a member of the Go Newclear team and an employee of the Conservative Caucus Research Bureau amie Ellerton, the next Ethical Oil Institute Spokesperson and Executive Director from January 2012 to April 2013, also has a close association with Minister Kenney, having been his Executive Assistant from July 2008 to September 2010. After working for Minister Kenney, Mr. Ellerton was Executive Assistant to Ontario Conservative Party leader Tim Hudak he employees of the Ethical Oil Institute are not the only physical link between the organization and the Conservative Party of Canada. As has been pointed out in the media, the Ethical Oil Institute’s mailing address was previously used by Treasury Board President and Conservative MP Tony Clement’s re-election campaign eyond this apparent coordination of resources, the Ethical Oil Institute and its spokespeople have consistently both anticipated and echoed Conservative Party messaging about the oil sands.