Tag: World Health Organization

How the Young Will See Their Future – and the cost to all of us if they don’t

Posted on by Kate Moynihan
Photo of David Mukisa by Joe Raffanti.
Photo by Joe Raffanti: From the age of two, David Mukisa from Busia, Uganda, lived with poor eyesight, affecting every aspect of his young life. When he was seven, his mother joined a group traveling to Seva-supported Benedictine Eye Hospital. There, he was diagnosed with cataracts, and received bilateral cataract surgeries for free. “Fortunately he could be treated, even though I didn’t have money,” said David’s mom Alexia. ”A great weight has been lifted from my heart.”

Last month, the Seva Foundation and The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness released a groundbreaking report revealing a striking truth:

Children with vision loss learn at half the rate of those with good or corrected vision. Put another way – every year, 6.3 million school years are lost due to uncorrected vision, amounting to $173 billion in future earnings each year. Imagine the impact if those kids could simply see the board. What innovations would emerge? What challenges could these young minds overcome?

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Seva at WHO SPECS 2030

Posted on by Kate Moynihan

Seva is again at the heart of a global and audacious idea. If successful, it will improve the quality of life for millions of individuals worldwide.

This summer, with Seva’s Director of Impact and Learning, Lauren Jesudason, I represented the Seva Foundation in Geneva, Switzerland, as a founding member of the World Health Organization’s latest initiative, SPECS 2030. This was a chance for Seva to take a seat at the global table – once again – lending our decades of experience and goodwill to an exciting undertaking.

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What Kind of Return Does a Dollar Get?

Posted on by Seva Foundation

Only social equity, stronger economies, and rediscovered dignity. 

Photo by Joe Raffanti.
Photo by Joe Raffanti.

Eyesight influences most aspects of daily life, from the playground to the job-site, infancy to old age. It’s alarming, then, that one-quarter of the global population – 2.2 billion people – are living with vision impairment, and only half of those get the care they need. More women are affected than men, and the numbers increase sharply with age. Without significant investment in preventative actions, these numbers are projected to increase to 1.8 billion by 2050, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. 

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Dr. Suzanne Gilbert: A Career in Service, Spirit, and Science.

Posted on by Seva Foundation
Photo: Suzanne Gilbert, Jahanara Romney, and Girija Brilliant prepare for the 1982 Board meeting outside the first Seva office.
Photo above: Suzanne Gilbert, Jahanara Romney, and Girija Brilliant prepare for the 1982 Board meeting outside the first Seva office.

This summer will begin a new chapter for Dr. Suzanne Gilbert as she retires from the Seva Foundation.

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