The Citi Foundation aims to advance financial inclusion and economic empowerment for underserved individuals and communities. With an emphasis on providing unrestricted, trust-based funding, they support local community organizations in creating social and economic opportunities for low-income communities.
The Citi Foundation's grant program, through its Global Innovation Challenge, is focused on empowering NGOs worldwide to address food insecurity and homelessness. The program's broad goal is to surface locally relevant, potentially game-changing ideas by providing support to community organizations. Specifically, it offers 24-month grants of $500,000 (USD) to 50 organizations in communities where Citi has a presence. These grants are designed to be catalytic, supporting the pilot or expansion of projects targeting homelessness. The Foundation also aims to augment this financial support with volunteer help and learning opportunities for grantees, to facilitate the sharing of lessons and best practices. The program is particularly interested in proposals that innovate in enhancing emergency shelter systems, embedding financial coaching for low-income individuals seeking stable housing, or prioritizing stable housing to facilitate access to additional support services.