This World Sight Day, our colours are lighting up skylines in communities across Canada, from Calgary to Winnipeg and from Guelph to Toronto. We’ll be sharing photos on our website and social media, so everyone can see them.  

If you live in Calgary, where we have been based for more than six decades, look up, way up, at the Calgary Tower after dark on October 9. To help raise awareness of the importance of eye health, the Calgary Tower will shine in Operation Eyesight’s blue and orange.

If you live in Toronto, you can see the CN Tower shining in blue and orange (and yellow, for another eye-related organization that is also marketing World Sight Day). Wherever you live in Canada, urban, rural or remote, you can view the CN Tower lighting through the Tower’s webcam here. Catch the light show at the top of every hour and at every half hour.

Guelph’s Market Square lit up in blue and orange overnight on October 8 to 9.

The Winnipeg Esplanade Riel Bridge and city sign will be lit up on October 11 for World Sight Day as well as World Blindness Awareness month (October).

Why we’re raising awareness of eye health in Canada on World Sight Day

As of 2019, in Canada, 1.2 million people experience vision loss, which is 3.2 per cent of the population, and another estimated eight million people – 19 per cent – have eye conditions that could lead to blindness.

Fortunately, 75 per cent of vision loss in Canada is avoidable

Avoidable vision loss can be prevented or treated when detected and addressed early. This is best done through regular eye exams; however, just 51 per cent of people in Canada are aware of how often to get an exam. Vision loss impacts people of all ages and touches all aspects of life including:

• education (students with uncorrected refractive error learn 50 per cent less than peers);
• employment (vision loss can lead to a 30 per cent reduction in employment); and
• Canada’s economy – in 2019 alone the estimated cost of vision loss was nearly 33 billion dollars according to The Cost of Vision Loss and Blindness in Canada report.

World Sight Day is in focus in Canada this year with the passing of the National Strategy for Eye Care Act  in November 2024.

Kris Kelm, our Global Director – International Programs and Chair of the Canadian Eye Health Coalition, says, “Canada has made eye health a national priority with the passage of the National Strategy for Eye Care Act. We’re hard at work with like-minded organizations and communities, including Indigenous communities, to help shape the framework for an eye health care system that will serve all Canadians, from Inuvik to Iqaluit, and from Victoria to St. John’s – and every urban, rural and remote community in between. We are proud to bring more than 60 years of experience – earned building eye health care systems with partners in Africa and South Asia – to the table, and we feel that there is a lot for our Canadian policy to learn from international experience.”

Our President & CEO Kashinath Bhoosnurmath says, “Together, we can build an eye health care system in Canada that improves quality of life for us all, personally and for our family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. Together, we can eliminate avoidable vision loss in Canada to expand our collective opportunities – and be a shining inspiration for others.”

Eyesight on the international stage

On September 23, 2025, the UN Friends of Vision, collaborating with the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) which facilitates World Sight Day worldwide, presented the very first The Value of Vision: The Investment Case for Eye Health to the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The case will help inform international frameworks and lay a path for countries to build eye health care systems.

World Sight Day 2025: A list of Operation Eyesight activities in Canada

• Co-hosting a webinar for decision makers called The Future in Focus: Eye Health in Canada and Beyond. The webinar, a collaboration between Operation Eyesight, Seva Canada and Orbis Canada, will focus on the rising demand for eye health care nationally and globally, on Thursday, October 9.
• Helping kids love their eyes: We’re encouraging parents, guardians and teachers to download resources for educating children (and themselves) about eye health: operationeyesight.com/free-resources-for-parents

We will be sharing our activities on social media and our website. Learn more or donate in honour of World Sight Day at operationeyesight.com/worldsightday.

Happy World Sight Day! And thank you to our staff, donors and partners around the world for your steadfast dedication to our mission to prevent blindness and restore sight – For All The World To See!

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When Fassikaw was in first grade, he began to have trouble seeing objects far away. Reading books and the blackboard became difficult. Sitting in the middle or back of the classroom, he often had to borrow his classmates’ exercise books to copy notes. 

At home, reading took him a long time. His eyes often watered, and his grades began to drop. More than his grades, his parents worried about his worsening vision and the way it was affecting his mood and sleep. Fassikaw even spoke about leaving school. 

Around this time, his family learned about our School Eye Health Program run in partnership with Partners in Education Ethiopia. The program offers free diagnosis and eyeglasses to students in need. 

After hearing this, his family went to the hospital and Fassikaw’s eyes were checked. At the hospital, tests revealed that Fassikaw’s vision required strong corrective lenses: +15.00 for his left eye and +16.00 for his right. Thanks to our partners and generous donors, he received the eyeglasses at no cost. 

Today, Fassikaw can read easily from anywhere in the classroom. At home, he reads without headaches or watery eyes. His grades have improved, and his class ranking has risen from 27^th to 21^st, with steady progress. 

His father says their son is now happy and confident, and the family can sleep without worry. “With God’s help, we hope you will never have to worry about anything,” he says with gratitude. 

Did you know?
Bringing eye health care to students is an investment in their education and their future. Globally, 450 million children have an eye condition that requires treatment; of these, 448 million have refractive errors that only require eye exams and eyeglasses (Source: IAPB Vision Atlas – Child Eye Health). The cost of eyeglasses in our countries of work is approximately C$20. 

By providing eyeglasses through school-based eye health programs, we can transform the lives of children like Fassikaw, helping them see clearly, succeed in school and embrace a brighter future. Give the Gift of Sight today.  

Our Work in Ethiopia 
Since beginning our work in Ethiopia in 2018, we’ve made significant strides toward preventing avoidable vision loss. In 2024, our programs reached more than 33,424 people through eye health screenings, treatment, training and community outreach. From surveying over 14,000 residents in Debre Work to training frontline workers and teachers, screening students and providing eyeglasses, we are building lasting capacity for quality eye care. Read more about our work in Ethiopia in our 2024 Annual Report. Download it here. 

The post Eyeglasses bring hope and better grades to Fassikaw   appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

Her world grew darker as cataracts began to cloud her vision and left her nearly blind. Everyday things like walking through crowded streets, cooking with the right spices and finding her way around her home became uncertain and difficult. 

Despite the challenges, her spirit stayed strong as she searched for the right eye health treatment, only to discover that the surgery she needed was far beyond what she could afford. 

One day she heard about a nearby outreach eye care camp by Operation Eyesight. Gulbahar made her way to the camp and embraced the chance for cataract surgery. 

She received cataract surgery at no cost. When the bandages were removed, she smiled. 

“I can see my world again,” she said. “I don’t need to stumble in the dark anymore. I’ve been given a second chance.” 

Today Gulbahar is back on her feet. She works and moves through her days with confidence and no longer depends on others. Her restored vision gave her more than sight. It gave her freedom. 

But stories like Gulbahar’s are far too common. 

You can help change that. Your contribution provides people with the knowledge and resources they need to regain their vision and independence. 

Did you know?   
Globally, 55 per cent of people experiencing vision loss are women and girls. There are a number of different factors for this, including longer lifespans (people over 50 experience 73 per cent of all vision loss), limited access to eye and health care, and cultural factors. (Source: IAPB Vision Atlas) 

By giving the Gift of Sight, you can help prevent blindness, restore sight and create second chances for more people like Gulbahar. Thank you for your support! 

The post Cataract surgery brings second chance for Gulbahar appeared first on Operation Eyesight.

A couple years ago, Abraham started having trouble with his vision. His work suffered as he had more and more difficulty focusing his eyes on the tiny stitches and delicate work of shoe repair. He began pricking himself repeatedly with the needles, and eventually, he couldn’t get the needles threaded at all. Finally, he had to shutter his business.

At age 65, Abraham’s six children are now grown up, but his income was essential to supporting his grandkids. Without being able to repair shoes, he had to rely on his wife’s earnings as a farmer to get by.

The loss of income wasn’t the only financial difficulty exacerbated by his vision loss. Because he couldn’t see well enough to punch in his PIN on his phone, Abraham started giving the number to shop attendants while making purchases. Eventually he realized that some of them were stealing from him and transferring additional money to themselves before handing the phone back over.

Abraham went to a nearby clinic for help with his vision. He received a prescription for eyedrops, but his condition continued to worsen despite regularly using the drops.

One day, Abraham met one of our community health volunteers, who was going house to house doing eye health screenings. The volunteer gave Abraham a referral to the eye unit at our partner facility, the Iten County Referral Hospital, where he was diagnosed with cataracts in both eyes.

Just weeks later, Abraham went back to the Iten Eye Unit. The surgeries on both eyes were a success, and when our staff caught up with him, they were impressed with how quickly he had bounced back. He has started repairing shoes again and is happy to be taking care of his family with the income. He has also become an eye health ambassador, telling his neighbours about the Iten Eye Unit and how eye surgery transformed his life.

Please consider making a donation to help more people like Abraham get back to work!

Story written with files from Caroline Ikumu.

The post A stitch in time: Cataract surgery revives career appeared first on Operation Eyesight.