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Toyota Donates Millions To National Environmental Education Foundation

BALTIMORE (WJZ)—A public-private partnership is bringing much needed funding to our nation's parks. In Baltimore comes a major announcement from Toyota showing its commitment to more than just building cars.

Mary Bubala has more.

Toyota is donating $3 million to the National Environmental Education Foundation. It will help fund programs to enrich parks and land across the country.

"We want to make sure we make the smallest footprint as possible on the environment, that we do everything to make parks like this thrive, not survive, but thrive," said JL Armstrong, Toyota Motor Sales.

The announcement was made at Ft. McHenry on Monday, which best combines the outdoors, education and history into one big lesson for students.

"This donation is going to unleash the power of friends, friends groups, like the friends of Ft. McHenry and all over the country who are going to benefit now and will be able to support their public land, being out with volunteers and host events throughout the country," said Diane Wood, NEEF.

Part of the $3 million donated by Toyota was given right away to a local organization that connects young people to the outdoors. The Living Classrooms Foundation was awarded a $5,000 grant.

It's what President Obama envisioned when he started America's Great Outdoors Initiative, which is part of this program.

"America's great outdoors provides kids with real opportunity to get hands-on learning about their environment and to love it and appreciate it and make sure they are doing everything they can to protect them," said Nancy Sutley, White House Council on Environmental Quality.

Toyota has been working with the NEEF for more than a decade.

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