October is a big month for blindness awareness, but the second Thursday in particular as it was the annual World Sight Day. World Sight Day is a day used to raise awareness about blindness and accessibility issues for visually impaired people. World Sight Day is always an important day for us at Be My Eyes, but this year it was a little extra special. Together with two of our Specialized Help partners, Clearblue and Herbal Essences, we had some exciting announcements to share on the occasion of World Sight Day 2019.
Although their agents have been answering calls since July, Clearblue officially announced their partnership with Be My Eyes on World Sight Day. Earlier this year, Clearblue was approached by RNIB, Royal National Institute of the Blind, and made aware of how inaccessible pregnancy and fertility tests are for visually impaired women. Until now, it hasn’t been possible for blind and low-vision women and couples to read the results of their pregnancy and fertility tests privately without a lot of extra effort. Determined to find a solution to this problem on the way to fully accessible pregnancy tests, Clearblue has partnered with Be My Eyes to offer a service, where blind and low-vision women and couples from the privacy of their own home can connect with a Clearblue advisor who can read the results of their tests.
In collaboration with RNIB, Procter & Gamble, and The&Partnership, Clearblue and Be My Eyes have released a video outlining the problem and showcasing the solution that Clearblue offers through Be My Eyes. You can watch the Clearblue and Be My Eyes partnership video below.
On the occasion of World Sight Day, Herbal Essences announced an array of initiatives making their products more accessible for their blind and low-vision customers. Not only did they promote their accessible customer support through Be My Eyes, where blind and low-vision customers can get guidance on picking out the right products for their hair type, information about ingredients, and general hair care advice, they also announced that they’re expanding their tactile markings to all Herbal Essences products in January 2020, and that they’re launching a skill on Amazon’s Alexa. Herbal Essences had turned a hair salon in New York City into a botanical paradise for the purpose, where the attendees could experience hair styling as a blind individual as well as get up close and actually feel the new Herbal Essences tactile shampoo and conditioner bottles.
Youtube Star Molly Burke was a special guest at the event and documented her experience on her YouTube channel. Molly had an interesting talk with Procter & Gamble’s Accessibility Leader, Sumaira Latif, who is the driving force behind the tactile bottles and the partnership with Be My Eyes. Check out Molly’s video from the Herbal Essences event below.
We hope you all had a great World Sight Day! How did you celebrate? We want to give a special thank you to our partners, who use this day to spread awareness and work with us everyday to make sure that their products and services are accessible for people who are blind or have low vision.
