TORONTO, Jan. 8 /CNW/ - One of Canada's longest-serving environmental
charities is making a New Year's resolution to fund more environmental and
wildlife projects in 2009. The TD Friends of the Environment Foundation (TD
FEF) has funding available and is inviting non-profit organizations with a
Charitable Registration Number and schools to apply for funding online at
www.fef.ca.
    "The risk is that in tough economic times, supporting the environment
could move down the list of priorities for Canadians causing these non-profit
groups to see a decline in funding for their projects," says Mary Desjardins,
Executive Director, TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. "Our foundation
provides funding to hundreds of grassroots projects annually - and even when
times are tough - we'll continue to support qualified, local environmental
projects from coast to coast."

    How TD FEF works:
    -   TD FEF is a national organization with a grassroots focus that
        supports local environmental projects, and works with people who want
        to protect and preserve the environment in their own backyard.
    -   Money is raised locally by TD customers and employees and is spent
        locally. TD Bank Financial Group assumes the management costs for TD
        FEF, which means that 100 per cent of every dollar donated to the
        foundation goes to support projects in the community where the
        donation was made.
    -   There are 93 TD FEF Advisory Boards across Canada staffed by more
        than 800 TD customers and employees. Local non-profits and schools
        apply for funding and the Advisory Boards recommend which projects to
        support.

    "We recognize many charities may be feeling the pinch and we want them to
know that we have money to grant. We urge qualified non-profit organizations
and schools with environmental and wildlife projects to contact us for
funding," says Desjardins. "The fact is that we received five per cent fewer
applications in 2008 than we did in 2007, so we're kicking off the New Year by
letting non-profits know that we want to help get their environmental projects
off the ground."

    The types of projects supported by TD FEF
    include (but are not limited to):

    -   Wildlife rehabilitation
    -   Education programs for children
    -   Environmental cleanups
    -   Tree planting campaigns
    -   Conservation and recycling initiatives
    -   Urban renewal

    Non-profit organizations interested in submitting a request for financial
support to TD Friends of the Environment Foundation should visit www.fef.ca
for more information. Funding applications are only accepted online.

    Canadians can get involved with TD FEF by:
    -   Donating to TD FEF for as little as $2 per month or by making a one-
        time donation.
    -   Volunteering with their local TD FEF Chapter Advisory Board or sign-
        up to support a TD FEF environmental project like the TD Great
        Canadian Shoreline Cleanup (www.vanaqua.org/cleanup).
    -   Visit the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation page on Facebook.

    About TD Friends of the Environment Foundation:

    Since 1990, TD FEF has provided $47 million in funding to over 17,500
grassroots environment and wildlife projects across Canada. In 2008, TD FEF
provided more than $3 million in support of over 800 projects. Thousands of TD
customers and employees donate to TD FEF on a monthly basis and TD Bank
Financial Group contributes in excess of $1 million annually. TD also covers
the management costs of running TD FEF; this ensures 100 per cent of every
dollar donated goes directly to funding environment and wildlife projects in
the community where the donation was made. For more information on how to
donate and get involved in your community, visit www.fef.ca.

For further information: Carolyn Abbass, Karen McCullough, Paradigm
Public Relations, (416) 203-2223, cabbass@paradigmpr.ca,
kmccullough@paradigmpr.ca; Gregory Harrison, TD Friends of the Environment
Foundation, (416) 308-8597, gregory.harrison@td.com