Letter from Jacques Gérin

March 18, 2005

Mr. Alan Latourelle
Chief Executive Officer
Parks Canada Agency
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 0M5

Dear Sir:

At the end of the recent Minister's Round Table, I had an opportunity to express my satisfaction with the progress made toward a conservation culture at Parks Canada, particularly with respect to implementation of the recommendations of the Panel on the Ecological Integrity of Canada's National Parks and the action plan that the Agency established for itself.

I wanted to salute the work of the whole Parks Canada team and the leadership that you provide.

I also wanted to point out the challenges that the Agency is now facing, including three that I consider major:

• Holding firm: This conservation culture must be firmly established throughout the organization and must remain fundamental, regardless of the vagaries of the moment.
   
• Doing a lot with a little: Even though we all welcomed the budget increases, which do give us cause to rejoice, there will always be more to do than there will be resources available. It will always be necessary to innovate, prioritize and emphasize the actions that will have the most impact in the long term.
   
• Promoting, both within and outside the Agency, with employees, visitors and the public, ecological integrity of the parks as a positive and constructive goal for raising all Canadians' awareness of and interest in the need to protect our parks now and in the future, for their enjoyment by present and future generations of Canadians.

Congratulations on what has been accomplished so far. I wish you every success in the work to come.

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