Stakeholders in Alberta’s oil sands engage with each other so that economic bene ts from oil sands development can be obtained within a sustainable environmental framework. In recent years, due to the rapid pace of development and heightened concern over the cumulative environmental impacts of oil sands development, stake- holder relations in the oil sands have come under increasing pres- sure. While stakeholders remain committed to their engagement, they’ve also felt the need to adjust their strategies through a more careful and balanced consideration of process, targeted partners, and outcomes. How and why this has happened offers important lessons about the practice of stakeholder relations in the oil sands.