Recognition provides $50,000 in funding to enhance community food resource tools and improve access to reliable food assistance information
MIAMI/FLORIDA (July 22, 2026) – Citizens has named Urban Health Partnerships a 2026 Champion in Action for Building AI Readiness and Capacity in South Florida. The recognition includes $50,000 in funding, along with volunteer and promotional support from Citizens colleagues. The award honors organizations that are finding practical ways to strengthen operations, build internal capacity, and increase community impact through the responsible use of emerging technologies.
This round’s Champions in Action theme reflects a growing need across the nonprofit sector. As organizations face increasing demand for services and greater pressure to operate efficiently, many are exploring how artificial intelligence can support community engagement, service delivery, administrative operations, and data management.
Through its Food & Nutrition for All Collaborative, Urban Health Partnerships works with more than 85 active members and over 200 network partners, including nonprofits, farms, public agencies, and community leaders focused on improving food security across South Florida. The organization helps address the “last-mile” barriers that often prevent people from locating and accessing reliable food resources.
Funding from the award will support enhancements to the organization’s Community Food Finder platform and expand the Food Finder Squad, a volunteer initiative that helps verify food resource information and improve data accuracy. The funding will also support AI readiness efforts, including staff training, development of AI governance practices, and technology enhancements that strengthen data verification, reporting, and partner coordination. By improving the quality and reliability of food resource information, Urban Health Partnerships aims to make it easier for residents to find assistance while helping local organizations respond more effectively to community needs.
“Artificial intelligence is changing how organizations operate, but many nonprofits don’t have access to the training and resources needed to take advantage of these tools,” said Jim Weiss, President of Citizens Florida. “Urban Health Partnerships is helping close that gap by using technology to strengthen food access, improve information sharing, and better connect people with critical community resources. That’s exactly the kind of innovation and community impact Champions in Action was created to support.”
As a Champion in Action, Urban Health Partnerships will receive:
- A $50,000 contribution from Citizens
- Volunteer support from Citizens colleagues
- Public relations and promotional support
“Sustainable change doesn’t happen by accident. It takes intentional investment in relationships, in systems, and in the people who know their communities best,” said Dr. Andrea Iglesias, CEO & Executive Director, Urban Health Partnerships. “At Urban Health Partnerships, we co-design that change with the communities we serve, not for them. Our work promotes health and well-being across the life span, rooted in trust and guided by lived experience.”
Since launching 24 years ago, Citizens’ Champions in Action program has awarded more than $13 million in grants and promotional and volunteer support to more than 420 nonprofits across the bank’s footprint. In Florida, 4 nonprofits have been recognized, receiving $200,000 in funding.
The Champions in Action program celebrates and supports high-impact nonprofits with annual budgets under $5 million that are driving measurable, lasting change in their communities. Twice a year, Citizens selects one nonprofit in each of its nine major markets to receive funding and resources aligned with the bank’s Sustainability and Impact focus areas – Fostering Strong Communities, Building the Workforce of the Future, and Supporting Positive Climate Impact.
For more information about the Champions in Action program, visit Champions in Action | Be Inspired | Citizens (citizensbank.com). To learn more about Citizens’ Sustainability and Impact strategy, visit Sustainability and Impact (citizensbank.com).
About Urban Health Partnerships
Urban Health Partnerships (UHP) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to investing in communities through collaborative solutions that promote health and well-being across the lifespan. Since 2011, UHP has distinguished itself through leadership in collective impact and a commitment to community-driven change. UHP brings a unique cross-sector perspective to place-based initiatives, integrating public health, mental health, urban planning, age-friendly communities, food access, and community development to support healthier, more connected communities. To learn more, visit urbanhp.org.
About Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with $233.8 billion in assets as of June 30, 2026. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens offers a broad range of retail, private banking, wealth management and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. Citizens helps its customers reach their potential by listening to them and by understanding their needs in order to offer tailored advice, ideas and solutions. In Consumer Banking, Citizens provides an integrated experience that includes mobile and online banking, a full-service customer contact center and the convenience of approximately 3,000 ATMs and approximately 1,000 branches in 14 states and the District of Columbia. Consumer Banking products and services include a full range of banking, lending, savings, wealth management and small business offerings. Consumer Banking includes Citizens Private Bank and Private Wealth, which integrate banking services and wealth management solutions to serve high- and ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families, as well as investors, entrepreneurs and businesses. In Commercial Banking, Citizens offers a broad complement of financial products and solutions, including lending and leasing, deposit and treasury management services, foreign exchange, interest rate and commodity risk management solutions, as well as loan syndication, corporate finance, merger and acquisition, and debt and equity capital markets capabilities. More information is available at www.citizensbank.com or visit us on X, LinkedIn or Facebook.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Alba Rubio, alba@urbanhp.org
Senior Manager of Communications and Public Relations, Urban Health Partnerships
###