World Sight Day: What it is and why it’s important
What is World Sight Day?
World Sight Day is an annual event aimed at raising global awareness about vision impairment and blindness. It’s coordinated by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) and the World Health Organization (WHO) and is observed on the second Thursday of every October.
Every year, World Sight Day brings together top organizations, including Optometry Giving Sight, the Lions Clubs International Foundation, Prevent Blindness, Orbis International, The Ophthalmology Foundation and many others, to promote comprehensive eye exams, lobby for governmental eye health funding and educate the public on preventing blindness. Participants include hospitals, nonprofits and eye care professionals around the world.
According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 2.2 billion people around the world are unable to see clearly. Of these people, around one billion have preventable or untreated vision problems.
World Sight Day falls on the second Thursday of October.
You can personally make a difference during World Sight Day (and throughout the year) by contributing to organizations dedicated to eradicating global vision impairment and blindness. Your local eye care professional may be participating, too, and they will have ways for you to help those efforts in your community. Your charitable support and service can improve the vision of people in your community and around the world.
History of World Sight Day
World Sight Day began through the initiatives and collaboration of several organizations. In 1990, the Lions Clubs International Foundation launched its SightFirst campaign to restore, improve and preserve sight. In 1999, the IAPB and the WHO together created VISION 2020: The Right to Sight initiative to eliminate preventable blindness.
On October 12, 2000, the first official World Sight Day took place under the banner of VISION 2020, integrating with the Lions Clubs International Foundation’s SightFirst campaign. The Lions became a key promoter of World Sight Day, and hundreds of other organizations joined the efforts and helped the event to grow.
In addition to raising awareness, the organizers of World Sight Day aim to encourage people around the world to seek eye care. They also advocate for decision-makers to place a greater emphasis on eye health.
Today, the IAPB and the WHO, in collaboration with over 250 IAPB member organizations worldwide, continue to coordinate this important event.
Why World Sight Day is important
Globally, vision problems and blindness are often the result of various conditions. Many of these are treatable if caught early. Raising awareness of these issues is key to potentially improving sight for people around the world.
The top causes of vision loss and blindness worldwide include:
- Myopia (nearsightedness) – Distant vision is blurry while near vision is clear.
- Hyperopia (farsightedness) – Near vision is blurry while distant vision is clear.
- Cataracts – The natural crystalline lens inside the eye becomes cloudy, which can affect vision.
- Diabetic retinopathy (DR) – This diabetes-related eye problem changes retinal blood vessels. It can cause damage and lead to vision loss.
- Glaucoma – Often caused by fluid buildup in the eye, glaucoma damages the optic nerve. It can lead to vision loss and blindness without timely treatment.
- Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) – AMD affects the macula (the center of the retina) and can result in central vision loss.
Uncorrected vision impairment and blindness can have a significant impact on individuals and communities. For adults, this can contribute to:
- Difficulty finding and keeping a job
- An increased risk of depression and anxiety
- Mobility issues, especially among older adults, who are at a higher risk of falling and fractures
- Social isolation
For children, uncorrected vision issues can hinder learning and development in the following ways:
- Young kids with early-onset irreversible severe vision impairment may be slower to develop motor, social, emotional and cognitive skills
- School-age children may not perform as well in school as their peers
How to get involved
Organizations across the globe strive to help people see clearly on World Sight Day and year-round. Some of these organizations include:
Optometry Giving Sight
Optometry Giving Sight was founded in 2003 by the IAPB, the World Council of Optometry (WCO) and the Brien Holden Vision Institute (BHVI) to focus on the problem of vision impairment globally. The organization is supported by optometric professional societies, optometry professionals, corporations, patients and others who donate to provide funding for eye exams, low-cost or free glasses, optometry schools, vision centers, optical labs and training for eye care professionals.
With offices in Canada and the United States, Optometry Giving Sight coordinates the World Sight Day Challenge in the month of October, across the globe. This is a major international fundraising event that brings the global optometric community together to help end avoidable blindness and vision impairment.
How you can make a difference
Charitable donations or participation in local or global fundraising activities. Your support can have an immediate and lasting impact.
IAPB
The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness partners with companies and organizations around the world. Through the IAPB #LoveYourEyes campaign, the organization and its partners advocate for making eye care accessible, available and affordable. They also run a yearly World Sight Day photo competition, which accepts entries focusing on eye care and vision from amateur and professional photographers.
How you can make a difference
Visit the IAPB website and take the pledge to #LoveYourEyes. You can also fill out a form on their website to share your story about eye health. And you can enlist your school, workplace or organization to participate in the IAPB World Sight Day Global Challenge to spread the word about the importance of eye care.
Lions Clubs International Foundation
World Sight Day traces its initial roots to the Lions Clubs International Foundation’s SightFirst campaign, which began in 1990. Vision remains one of the Lions’ eight global service areas.
How you can make a difference
With the Lions Recycle for Sight program, you can donate your usable eyewear at Lions-sponsored collection boxes in your community. Lions, Leos and other volunteers collect used eyeglasses and deliver them to regional Lions Eyeglass Recycling Centers. For information specific to locations in your community, contact your local Lions Club.
OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation
The OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation believes everyone deserves good vision. Its goal is to help eliminate uncorrected poor vision within one generation by focusing on four main areas:
About 400 North Texas schoolchildren received eye exams through the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation (formerly Essilor Vision Foundation). The kids received their free eyeglasses on World Sight Day.
- Creating sustainable access to eye care
- Providing free eye exams and glasses for people with the most need
- Funding local eye care programs
- Raising awareness in local communities
How you can make a difference
Each year, the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation has World Sight Day activities across the globe that help provide access to eye care services and raise awareness of its importance. You can help by participating in fundraisers or volunteer events.
Prevent Blindness
Since its founding in 1908, Prevent Blindness has made children’s eye health a central part of its mission. Prevent Blindness is partnering with the Delta Gamma Foundation and the IAPB to promote World Sight Day and to highlight the importance of children’s eye health by providing free vision screenings along with tools, resources and educational materials to promote eye health for kids.
The organization’s goal is also to lead efforts to enhance children’s eye health, including advocating for the passage of the Early Detection of Vision Impairment (EDVI) Act, which seeks to improve children’s access to eye care by providing resources at the state and community levels.
How you can make a difference
Consider contacting your member of Congress to tell them you support passage of the EDVI Act to create a federally funded program for children’s eye health. Also share the Prevent Blindness Glasses of the Future competition with local preschools and elementary schools and encourage them to have their students participate in designing the “glasses of the future.”
Orbis International
Known for its Flying Eye Hospital, Orbis International has been treating and preventing blindness for more than 35 years. Since 1982, they have conducted training programs in over 92 countries and trained hundreds of thousands of medical professionals.
How you can make a difference
You can celebrate someone special in your life by dedicating a charitable gift to Orbis in their name. Recipients will be notified of your gift by receiving a hand-addressed Orbis acknowledgment card in the mail.
If you’re interested in supporting World Sight Day, start by prioritizing your own vision. Schedule an appointment with your eye doctor today. You can also reach out to local vision organizations to inquire about donations, volunteer opportunities or both.
The Ophthalmology Foundation
The Ophthalmology Foundation works to bring ophthalmologists together for World Sight Day. The organization will hold a series of webinars for ophthalmologists to help them learn about Ophthalmology Foundation examinations and how they may help them advance in their careers.
How you can make a difference
Learn more about the work and mission of the Ophthalmology Foundation, which involves partnering with those in the ophthalmic space to support improved access to eye care and prevent blindness, especially in underserved countries.
