Kiara Balleza (she/they) was a 2023 Community-Academic Scholar working with Nutritional Sciences Prof. Manabu Nakamura and Common Ground Food Co-Operative to explore the feasibility of creating and sustainably operating co-op type grocery stores in low-income areas of Champaign County.
Kiara majored in geography and geography and geographic information science with a minor in public health. When she first joined the Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute (IHSI) Community-Academic Scholars program, she described feeling nervous and worried that she wouldn’t be able to make the type of impact she hoped. Throughout the summer, she learned how food co-ops, and the people who work there, have many qualities and connections that are needed to address food insecurity
“Their motivation and community-centered mindset allowed me to understand how a place like Common Ground stays active for more than 52 years! Solely by valuing sustainability, supporting local food systems, like urban/small rural farmers, and becoming a user-owned business. This helped me learn that food insecurity is not a one solution fits all. Co-ops are a supporting step to work beyond the food pantries and to create something with people in mind,” Kiara said.
Kiara is now working as Program Coordinator for Food Access at Plant Chicago and plans to continue advocating for local growers and the right to food.
Being a Community-Academic Scholar has kept me excited and motivated in my career and long-term goals and has inspired me to pursue a career in Spatial Epidemiology.
“Being a Community-Academic Scholar has kept me excited and motivated in my career and long-term goals and has inspired me to pursue a career in Spatial Epidemiology,” Kiara said. “I aim to expand food access research and investigate what other social determinants of health contribute to the consistent occurrence of chronic illnesses across the U.S.”
The Community-Academic Scholars will be featured as part of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Orange and Blue Days, March 4-6, 2026. More information on how to support the program can be found on the IHSI website.