Watch this BBC piece on the app, Be My Eyes which connects visually impaired users who need help with a small problem with volunteers who are willing to help. The app has been around for a few years now but it’s still gaining in popularity. The video walks you through an actual call between a mother who needs to find the right color thread and the volunteer who has offered a few minutes to help. Have you used the app Be My Eyes as either a volunteer or someone requesting assistance? Share your experiences in the comment section below.
An app to help blind people ‘see’
Our work was recently highlighted on ABC 10 News! They spent time at SDCB with Chris Summer who lost his sight after an accident at work discussing the assistance he’s received and how it has helped his daily life. They also spoke to Kim Gibbens, CEO, about the needs of our organization and how we are meeting the needs of the community despite government funding cuts. 
“To gain full humanity, blind people and sighted people need each other.” So closes the documentary Notes on Blindness from the BBC.
When people describe items, scenes or experiences, they often use visual references. But for someone who is blind or visually impaired, these descriptions might not mean a lot.
People who are visually impaired have not taken science classes in great numbers, probably partly due to the visual components of many areas of science. But a new device is helping people ‘see’ microscopic images using touch-feedback. Using the example of a blood smear, 
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing, along with the Library of Congress, provide a small, hand-held Currency Reader to people who are visually impaired. The program isn’t new, but with February being Low Vision Awareness Month in the US, they are reminding people of the availability of these free devices to those who need them. Read more about the program in their 
Devin Adams is a Grade 11 visually impaired student with a great big message that she recently shared. “Don’t change your expectations of me because I’m visually impaired.”
“Let’s transform the advocacy of words into the advocacy of achievement,” writes the author of 
As a child with deteriorating sight, Michael Schuman was told to choose a career that didn’t require sight. He didn’t. He became a foreign correspondent and uses various forms of assistive technology to aid him in his travels and in his career. From zooming in on a taxi meter to using an iPad to read on long flights, technology allows Michael, and many with similar disabilities, access to tasks that could otherwise be nearly impossible.
Amit Patel strapped a GoPro to his guide dog and recorded their daily commute in the London Underground together. He then uploaded the highs and lows of their experiences on social media. The footage went viral.
Christine Ha is a blind cook who is raising awareness of the abilities of people who are visually impaired. Her recent video illustrates her abilities in the kitchen and how she makes a meal using her other senses. With a GoPro on her head, Christine makes a full meal that looks delicious.
Kids who have learning disabilities or have trouble reading because of different types of visual impairments are often left out of reading games and competitions. Because of this, Learning Ally stepped in and created Learning Ally’s Great Reading Games for students across the US.
After the earthquakes experienced in New Zealand a few years ago, researches decided to look into how people with varying disabilities coped in the disaster, specifically studying those who are visually impaired. The results of the study is a report that lays out suggestions to ensure that people who are visually impaired are taken care of in emergency situations and calls for changes to emergency response plans.
This comical, yet serious article outlines 8 types of people you will meet as you’re out and about with a guide dog. From overly friendly people who want to reminisce about their own dog to those who can’t look up from a cell phone, the author covers it all in a way that will make you chuckle whether you have had similar experiences or not.
“The Third Eye project is making machines that can both see and perceive the world”. The machines are then being used to assist people who are visually impaired with daily tasks that are otherwise difficult to do independently, namely, shopping. Penn State researchers have mounted a camera on a glove that provides audio and haptic feedback to guide the user to the intended product while shopping. It will help people find a specific brand or type of product without having to ask a friend or store employee for help during a shopping trip.
Dancing is usually considered a visual activity when, in fact, it doesn’t need to hold a visual component as a group at the Royal Ballet is proving. Taught by Royal Company soloist David Pickering, the group of visually impaired adults is learning the basics of ballet and enjoying the gift of music, movement and friendship.
In 
“Autonomous vehicles will be transformative for people who are blind,” says Dave Power, Perkins’s president and CEO. “There is tremendous enthusiasm about it, both here and nationally, among the blind.”
Jameyanne Fuller has always been visually impaired. She has always had a “can-do” attitude and has always made life work on her own terms. After experiencing discrimination and a lack of awareness in the general public, she decided to take on the challenge. She is attending Harvard Law School to become a disability rights lawyer in order to effectively advocate for herself and others living with a disability. Read more about her accomplishments and the drive to succeed at Harvard in 
Dan Berlin has run the Grand Canyon, crossed the Inca Trail and climbed Kilimanjaro all in the name of encouraging kids who are visually impaired to consider blindness as just another obstacle to beat.
Sinéad is a young woman on a mission: to be the first blind athlete to accomplish the World Marathon Challenge, a task that requires completion of seven marathons on seven continents in seven days. An exhausting mission for anyone, Sinéad will be accompanied by her guide to help her through the marathons in varying climates and altitudes.
“Accessibility enables people with disabilities to perceive, understand, navigate, interact with, and contribute to the web.” And 
A new musical debuting in London, England, recognizes the contributions of Louis Braille and the difference he made in the lives of visually impaired people around the world with his creation of the Braille system of reading and writing. Well known theater actors will grace the stage to highlight the life of Louis Braille.
A map can be a useful tool to give directions, but it can also come in handy to understand the geography and topography of a region. MAD Lab has just completed a huge map of California to help those who are visually impaired or have low vision fully explore a map of the state.
The Fashion Industry is notorious for idolizing only stereotypical “picture perfect” models. In recent years, many people have called for a change. It appears that the call is slowly being heard.
Accessibility is a term that’s often thrown around without much thought given to the full meaning behind it.
Gaming hasn’t been terribly accessible to blind and visually impaired people in the past. But of course, that hasn’t stopped some passionate gamers from enjoying whatever parts of it they can. Recently though, more games are being created that are accessible in full or in part, to the visually impaired gaming community. Many can be enjoyed by sighted and non sighted individuals making it more fun to play together.
Chaz Davis has a hereditary condition that has taken most of his sight over the past decade. As a younger man, Chaz ran track at school and did well. But after his vision started to deteriorate, he stopped running altogether. After a time though, he realized he had to stay mentally and physically healthy, so he took up running again. Now he runs with guides and made it to the Paralympics in Rio last summer as well as other races around the country.
In this article, which includes a video, 16 myths about blindness are dispelled including what visually impaired people see and if a person is completely blind, what the absence of sight is like.
To better understand what a visually impaired person sees, Refinery 29 spoke with five blind or visually impaired women. They interviewed the women about what they ‘see’ and came up with a photo to represent the description. They then photographed the women to show the difference between what the women see and what the world sees.
Having a child who is visually impaired means that you may want to adjust a few things during the holidays to help them more fully experience the traditions that everyone else is witnessing.
Sachin Pavithran has been blind since he was a child, but hasn’t let that change the way he lives life, the things he accomplishes or his attitude.
“The fear does creep into your heart and into your mind and you have to just harness your inner strength and let it go,” says U.S. Paralympic alpine ski racer Danelle Umstead about skiing blind.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch has just signed a final rule stating that cinemas must own, maintain and advertise aids to customers with disabilities. This includes closed captioning for deaf movie goers and audio descriptions for visually impaired patrons.
