environment

ExxonMobil recognizes the importance of good environmental stewardship while meeting the world’s growing demands for energy and improving lives in the areas we operate. This is reflected in not only our business practices, but also in the environmental programs in which we invest.

In 2006, worldwide environmental contributions were $6.5 million, of which $4.5 million supported environmental programs in communities outside of the United States. We provide support in a range of areas, such as scientific research on important environmental issues, encouraging public discussion on environmental policy, and implementing biodiversity conservation through the preservation of endangered species, their habitats, and other biologically diverse ecosystems. We are increasingly focused on making investments to build the capacity of local communities to maintain and protect their natural environment.

2006 marked the 11th anniversary of the ExxonMobil Foundation's establishment of Save The Tiger Fund (STF) with NGO partner National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. During this period we continued our support with a $1.2 million contribution, as well as providing on-going management support and guidance. Through this partnership, ExxonMobil has contributed more than $13 million in support of tiger conservation projects in 13 of the 14 tiger-range countries. STF works with international organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, Conservation International, WildAid, and Fauna and Flora International, along with local organizations in tiger-range countries. STF supports field research in tiger-range countries, anti-poaching efforts, initiatives to stop trade in tiger parts, public education about the plight of the tiger, and projects that foster collaboration, and capacity building among government agencies, non-governmental organizations, businesses, civil society and individuals. The Campaign Against Tiger Trafficking (CATT), which STF launched in 2005, has demonstrated effectiveness in fostering NGO cooperation on a global level to stop the poaching, smuggling, trade and use of tiger parts.

ExxonMobil makes investments that connect economic development with biodiversity and build local capacity. An example is our support for the Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program (BBPP), an academic partnership between Arcadia University in Glenside, PA and the Universidad Nacional de Guinea Ecuatorial. In 2006, $187,000 was contributed as part of a two year $384,000 commitment. The project entails developing the skills of local university bioscientists, creating a research center in Equatorial Guinea and employing local villagers as wildlife patrols and data collectors. Through the activities of this program, villagers are becoming good stewards of their natural environment, building their intellectual capacity in the biological sciences and laying the groundwork for a viable ecotourism sector.

In 2006 we also made a second installment of $350,000 to Leuser International Fund (LIF) as part of our two-year $700,000 grant to provide support for essential wildlife security services in the Leuser ecosystem area in Indonesia while LIF puts in place a sustainable financial plan. The Leuser ecosystem is in northern Sumatra, and is widely believed to be one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world.

ExxonMobil Foundation looks for ways to increase private citizen/sector involvement in good conservation practices. For more than a decade, ExxonMobil Foundation has been supporting the Wildlife Habitat Council’s (WHC) efforts to increase the amount of quality wildlife habitat on corporate, private, and public lands. Five of ExxonMobil’s business properties are certified WHC sites. These sites provide habitat for wildlife in Montana, Wyoming, Texas and New Jersey. In 2006, ExxonMobil became a founding supporter of WHC’s Corporate Land for Learning program designed to build on WHC's efforts and encourage certified WHC private lands to become conservation educational centers for the communities in which they operate.

We also continued to support the Private Landowners Network's (PLN), contributing $50,000 to Resources First Foundation to support PLN's on-going efforts to expand its Web portal that allows private landowners to easily access conservation best practices and specific ecological information about their locality.