The 2024 TD Ready Challenge

The TD Ready Challenge is our annual North American initiative, which has ten (10) $1 million grants available to organizations developing innovative, impactful and measurable solutions for a changing world. This signature program created by TD is a key component to delivering on the bank’s corporate citizenship platform, the TD Ready Commitment.

In its seventh year, eligible non-profits and community organizations could apply for grants of CDN $1 million for Canadian-based organizations and USD $1 million for US-based organizations.

Ten 2024 TD Ready Challenge grant recipients have been announced! Click on the 'Recipients' tab to explore more.

The TD Ready Challenge is currently on pause for 2025 as we assess how to best align our programs with the evolving needs of the communities we serve. Funding opportunities remain active through the TD Ready Commitment. Visit the funding page to learn more.

Challenge Overview
Common questions
Recipients

Each year, the TD Ready Challenge invites eligible organizations to submit applications that offer solutions for a Problem Statement that is connected to one of the four drivers of change of the TD Ready Commitment: Financial Security, Vibrant Planet, Connected Communities, and Better Health. The 2024 TD Ready Challenge is seeking applications from charitable and non-profit organizations that propose innovative approaches to supporting underserved small business owners to develop a business, launch a new business, or grow an existing business.

We encourage applicants to present novel strategies, technologies or partnerships that have the potential to disrupt systemic barriers for underserved entrepreneurs with the goal of cultivating a more inclusive and supportive entrepreneurial landscape across North America.

Background

Entrepreneurs in Canada and the US are persevering despite the fragility of the small business sector post-pandemic. Underrepresented and underserved community entrepreneurs are especially vulnerable to certain economic forces.

According to a recent Harvard Business Review article, as of October 2023 “Americans were still filing 59% more applications to start new businesses than they were before the pandemic.” Contrasting this trend, Business Development Canada has found that almost half as many Canadians are starting businesses today as compared to 20 years ago.

Some industries such as home health and personal care are predicted to grow, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics as the population ages. Meanwhile, other industries such as hospitality and the arts are still recovering post-pandemic. For example, according to research from the Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship, self-employed creative workers within the arts and culture sector often see fluctuations in their income, earning on a project-by-project basis, and are usually dependent on multiple funding streams. This combination means many struggle to meet basic needs.

Regardless of whether a small business is just starting, working to recover from the pandemic, or poised for growth, data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that 18% of small businesses fail within the first year. By the fifth year, 50% will have failed due to insufficient funding and support. Common reasons for small business failure can include access to capital, ineffective business planning, lack of credit history, and lack of knowledge of local languages, especially for entrepreneurs from underserved communities. Research from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce notes that contemporary small businesses face slower growth, lower revenue, and weaker employment.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce also found that "large gaps remain in business ownership representation for a variety of equity-seeking Groups." In Canada, visible minorities represent almost 26.5% of the population but only 19.2% are majority business owners while in the U.S. minorities make up 32% of the population but business ownership represents only 18% of the population.

Certain groups face greater challenges and barriers to launching a new business or growing an existing business. These groups can include:

2SLGBTQ+ communities¹
Indigenous communities²
Low-income communities³
Newcomers⁴
People with existing health conditions and/or disabilities⁵
Racialized communities⁶
Veterans⁷
Women⁸

Problem Statement

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge is seeking applications from charitable and non-profit organizations that propose innovative approaches to supporting underserved small business owners to develop a business, launch a new business, or grow an existing business.

The 2024 Challenge

How can organizations address the Problem Statement?

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge seeks to provide financial support to organizations that have designed innovative, scalable and/or replicable solutions focused on addressing the 2024 Problem Statement.

Such solutions could be focused on, but are not limited to, one or more of the following:

Providing access to financial capital and support
Building business and financial planning skills
Providing business mentorship
Other

The grants

For 2024, there are a maximum of ten (10) grants available under the TD Ready Challenge for Canada and the US together. Eligible Canadian-based organizations are able to apply for CDN $1 million and eligible US-based organizations are able to apply for USD $1 million.

We will have a clear preference for programs that:

Are pilots or that are programs that will use the grant to scale and/or replicate solutions to additional communities or populations;
Have wide demographic or geographical reach in areas where the TD Bank Group ("TD") operates. This includes all of Canada as well as: (a) those US states that are within the TD Retail footprint (map and listing found here); and (b) the Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair and Wayne counties in the Metro Detroit area;
Have a clear evaluation and measurement process to track impact; and

Are put forward by organizations which have not received any funds or grants from TD of CDN $250,000 or more or USD $250,000 or more during the period starting on August 31, 2023 through to and including August 31, 2024.

Additional considerations

We will not fund grant applications that focus on:

Youth;
For profit companies or institutions; or
Lobbying for policy, legislation or regulations.

As part of the application process, TD requires an understanding of the financial status of your organization. If your organization's audited statement(s) reflect(s) a recent deficit, please explain the reason for this deficit in your application. Please note that a deficit will not impact your eligibility for a TD Ready Challenge Grant.

Eligibility Criteria

Programs presented in applications must deal directly with people and provide benefits to people and communities. Applicants can be Canadian, or US organizations as described below.

Canadian registered charities and not-for-profit organizations; or
U.S. charitable and not-for profit organizations which meet the following criteria and can provide written confirmation of same:

a. Have received Section 501(c)(3) determination from the Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS"); or

b. Are treated by the IRS as an organization that is not a private foundation as described in Sections 509(a)(1),(2) or (3) of the Internal Revenue Code (the "IRS Code"); or

c. Are a local/state government organization.

Note: 2019, 2020 & 2021 TD Ready Challenge Grant recipients are eligible to apply.

Elementary and secondary schools
Religious organizations (i.e., organizations whose primary purpose is religious practice or worship). However, faith-based organizations that provide programs and services for broader community benefit, may be considered.
Pageants
Sports teams and sporting events
Individuals or individual pursuits/fundraising initiatives
Recreational groups (lodges, fraternal clubs, self-improvement organizations, etc.)
Conferences, trade shows, fairs
Production of videos, DVDs and television shows
TD Employees
2022 and 2023 TD Ready Challenge Grant Recipients

Challenge Structure and Calendar

Final Round Judging Panel

Selected applicants who move into the final round of review will have their applications assessed by our TD North American Executive Judging Panel, consisting of TD executives and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States.

Legal

General inquiries

Grant applications must be received by 4:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Thursday, September 5, 2024. In fairness to all applicants, late or incomplete applications will not be considered. Applicants are responsible for allowing enough time when submitting their application to ensure its timely submission. Paper applications will not be accepted.

Submitting the application

All required documents must be in PDF format. The minimum font size for the detailed project application must be 10 point. Excel files will not be accepted. Your application must be accompanied by your organization's most recent audited financial statement conducted by a public accounting firm/professional, which must have been completed in the past two years, which must be scanned and condensed into a single document. You must not upload separate files as they will not be considered part of the application.

Evaluation

There will be 3 rounds of assessment as follows:

First Round of Assessment:

Following the Submission Deadline Date, an internal TD North American Judging Panel, selected by TD in its sole discretion and consisting of members of the TD Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship team and internal TD employees from both Canada and the United States, will review applications and assess them against the below criteria. This Panel will select applications to move into the next round of reviews and all applicants, whether successful or not, will be notified of their application status by email.

Assessment Criteria	Weight
Strategic alignment The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.	30%
Feasibility of the proposed plan The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.	30%
Well-positioned team The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.	20%
Value for money The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.	20%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores.

Second Round of Assessment:

Selected applicants will move into a second round of review completed by an internal TD North American Judging Panel, selected by TD in its sole discretion and consisting of members of the TD Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship team, internal TD colleagues from both Canada and the United States and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States. This Judging Panel will review applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round of Assessment set out above. This Panel will select applications to move into the final round of reviews and all applicants, whether successful or not, will be notified of their application status by email.

Final Round of Assessment:

This Judging Panel will review these applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round Assessment set out above plus one additional component involving a TD Employee Voting exercise which will have a 10% weighting.

TD Employee Voting exercise

For this TD Employee Voting exercise, applications will be anonymized, summarized and displayed internally so that TD Employees across North America can vote for the application of their choice. The TD Employee Voting exercise will have a 10% weighting, however this weighting will only be applied provided a minimum of 100 votes are received and the votes demonstrate a thoughtful review of the application in question. If the TD Employee Voting component is activated, the results of this voting will be provided to the Judging Panel and the weighting of the remaining criteria to be used by the Judging Panel will be adjusted as set out below. If the TD Employee Voting component is not activated, then the Judging Panel will review applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round of Assessment set out above.

Selected applicants may be asked to prepare supplementary materials for review by the Judging Panel as part of the Final Round of Assessment. Successful applicants will be contacted by email by the end of January 2025.

Assessment Criteria	Weight
Strategic alignment The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.	27.5%
Feasibility of the proposed plan The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.	27.5%
Well-positioned team The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.	17.5%
Value for money The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.	17.5%
TD Employee Voting Component	10%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores. In addition, a financial analysis of the organization may be conducted to measure the financial health of the organization.

There will be 3 rounds of assessment as follows:

First Round of Assessment:

Assessment Criteria	Weight
Strategic alignment The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.	30%
Feasibility of the proposed plan The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.	30%
Well-positioned team The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.	20%
Value for money The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.	20%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores.

Second Round of Assessment:

Final Round of Assessment:

TD Employee Voting exercise

Assessment Criteria	Weight
Strategic alignment The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.	27.5%
Feasibility of the proposed plan The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.	27.5%
Well-positioned team The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.	17.5%
Value for money The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.	17.5%
TD Employee Voting Component	10%

For 2024, the maximum total combined number of Grants available under the TD Ready Challenge for Canada and the US together, is a total maximum of ten (10) Grants (each a "Grant" and collectively the "Grants"), based on a budgetary funding commitment by The Toronto-Dominion Bank ("TD") for each of Canada and the US as follows:

A total Canadian budget maximum of CDN $10 million for a maximum of ten (10) Grants of CDN $1 million each; and
A total US budget maximum of USD $10 million for a maximum of ten (10) Grants of USD $1 million each.

The foregoing budgetary funding commitment is based on the clear understanding that there will not be more than a combined total of ten (10) Grants for Canada and the US together.

After the grant is awarded

For the 2024 TD Ready Challenge, successful Grant recipients will receive their specific Grant amount in a maximum of three annual installments, and the amount of each installment to be based on the length of the project. The exact amount of each installment to be mutually agreed in writing between the Bank and each recipient. An executed agreement between the Bank and each successful recipient will be required, which will include the mutually agreed upon installment payment schedule.

Specific questions for US organizations

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge Recipients

In our seventh year, the 2024 TD Ready Challenge received over 350 applications from eligible non-profit and charitable organizations across our North American footprint. Each application was extensively reviewed by a TD judging panel based on alignment to the problem statement, level of innovation and potential for sustainable impact. TD colleagues also had the opportunity to vote for their preferred finalist.

Ten recipients rose to the top with strong submissions that clearly demonstrated innovative, measurable, and scalable solutions that support underserved small business owners in developing, launching, or growing their businesses.

Meet the 2024 TD Ready Challenge grant recipients. Click on the recipients to learn about their programs in their own words.

$1 million CAD / $1 million USD Recipients

Toronto Arts Foundation (Canada)

Hot Bread Kitchen (U.S.)

Ampere (formerly The Pinnguaq Association) (Canada)

PA CDFI Network (U.S.)

Tamarack Institute For Community Engagement and Small Economy Works (Canada)
Syrian Canadian Foundation (SCF) (Canada)

Washington Area Community Investment Fund (WACIF) (U.S.)

Futurpreneur (Canada)

Tampa Bay Chamber Foundation (U.S.)

University of British Columbia (Canada)

Have a question about the TD Ready Challenge?

Email us

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge

Background

Problem Statement

The 2024 Challenge

We will have a clear preference for programs that:

Additional considerations

Eligibility Criteria

Challenge Structure and Calendar

Final Round Judging Panel

General inquiries

Submitting the application

Evaluation

After the grant is awarded

Specific questions for US organizations

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge Recipients

$1 million CAD / $1 million USD Recipients

Have a question about the TD Ready Challenge?

See you in a bit

Toronto Arts Foundation | Newcomer Artist Program (Canada)

Hot Bread Kitchen | HBK Incubates: Building financial security for immigrant and women of color small food business owners in New York City (U.S.)

Ampere (formerly The Pinnguaq Association) | Amp Up Small Business (Canada)

PA CDFI Network | Drive Your Business (U.S.)

Syrian Canadian Foundation (SCF) | Newcomer Entrepreneur Women (N.E.W) Venture (Canada)

Tamarack Institute For Community Engagement and Small Economy Works| Initiating Futures: Advancing rural, remote and northern entrepreneurs (Canada)

Washington Area Community Investment Fund (WACIF) | Resilient Futures: Small Business Financial Wellness and Wealth Building Program (U.S.)

Futurpreneur | Women in Entrepreneurship Initiative (Canada)

Tampa Bay Chamber Foundation | Empower Sustainability Focused Accelerator (SFA) (U.S.)

University of British Columbia (UBC) | UBC Sauder School of Business Ch’nook Management Program: Increasing Access to Economic Opportunities through Business Education, Entrepreneurship and Small Business Skills (Canada)

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge

Background

Problem Statement

The 2024 Challenge

We will have a clear preference for programs that:

Additional considerations

Eligibility Criteria

The following are eligible to apply:

The following are not eligible to apply:

Challenge Structure and Calendar

Final Round Judging Panel

Have a question about the TD Ready Challenge?