World Sight Day 2025: #LoveYourEyes - A Call to See, Care, and Act

Every year, on the second Thursday of October, the world pauses to shine a light on one of our greatest gifts: vision. In 2025, World Sight Day falls on 9 October, and the theme is #LoveYourEyes.  

But this is more than a slogan. It is a rallying cry,to individuals, communities, healthcare systems, and governments, to recognize how precious our eyesight is, to care for it daily, and to demand eye health systems that serve everyone, everywhere.

In this article, we explore:

1. Why eye health matters

2. The challenges in accessing care

3. What #LoveYourEyes means in practice

4. Spotlight: organizations leading the fight

5. How you and your community can take action

6. A strong call to action

Why Eye Health Matters

Vision is central to how we experience and interact with the world. With good eyesight, children can learn in the classroom, adults can work and earn a livelihood, and older people can maintain independence. Losing sight, or having poor vision can isolate, limit opportunity, and degrade quality of life.

Globally, about 2.2 billion people have some form of visual impairment. Nearly half of these cases are preventable or treatable.  

When eye health is neglected, it doesn’t just affect individuals, it undermines families, communities, and national prosperity. Poor vision leads to lost productivity, increased healthcare burdens, and reduced education outcomes.

Eye health supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As Sightsavers puts it: “Eye health equals opportunity.”   When people see well, they are better able to access education, find work, reduce poverty, and live healthier lives.  

In rural and underserved regions, eye health intersects with poverty, gender equity, and social inclusion. Vision impairment disproportionately affects marginalized groups, including women, older adults, and people in remote areas.

The Challenges in Eye Health Access

Despite advances, many barriers stand in the way of universal eye care.

In many low- and middle-income countries, there simply are not enough trained eye care professionals, clinics, or surgical facilities. Some health systems don’t place eye care high enough on their priority lists.

Sightsavers works to assess and strengthen eye health systems in sub-Saharan Africa using tools such as the Eye Care System Assessment (ECSA).  

Many people cannot afford eye exams, eyeglasses, or surgeries such as cataract removal. Without subsidized or public options, vision care remains out of reach for those who need it most.

Some individuals don’t realize the importance of routine eye checks or early treatment. Communities may lack awareness of preventable eye diseases, or delay care until vision loss is severe.

People in remote villages may have to travel great distances to reach eye clinics, and that journey itself can be prohibitive, especially for older or disabled individuals.

Eye-related diseases like trachoma, onchocerciasis (river blindness), glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and uncorrected refractive errors remain significant causes of vision loss. Many of these conditions are treatable or preventable if detected early.

Organizations like Sightsavers have long worked in combating trachoma and other eye-related neglected tropical diseases.  

What #LoveYourEyes Means in Practice

The #LoveYourEyes campaign is not just about awareness, it’s about action. It encourages individuals and institutions to put people at the heart of eye health.  

World Sight Day 2025 emphasizes Every Story Counts, the idea that behind every statistic is a person whose life was affected.   Sharing real experiences, of people getting glasses, cataract surgery, vision screening, or coping with vision loss, shapes empathy and action.

The campaign includes a Global Challenge aimed at engaging leaders, parliaments, and decision makers. It urges them to experience vision screening themselves and to elevate eye health in national agendas.  

From October 2025 onward, the campaign will spread a year-long petition, targeting one million pledges demanding decision-makers act on eye health.  

#LoveYourEyes encourages every individual to schedule a sight test, adopt healthy eye habits (reducing screen glare, protecting from UV exposure, getting proper light, etc.), and speak up for inclusive eye care.  

The campaign also includes Love Your Eyes at Work, recognizing that good vision is essential for safety, productivity, and well-being in the workplace.  

Spotlight on Leading Organizations

Let’s highlight two organizations doing critical work in eye health, and particularly focus on Sightsavers.

Sightsavers

Mission and Reach: Sightsavers is an international NGO whose goal is to prevent avoidable blindness, fight disease, and promote equality for people with disabilities.  

They operate in over 30 countries across Africa and Asia, working with local partners, governments, and communities to build sustainable eye health systems.  

Achievements and programs

• Since their founding in 1950, Sightsavers has supported nearly 9.76 million cataract operations.  

• They have distributed more than 1.85 billion treatments to prevent disease.  

• They have trained thousands of eye health workers, ophthalmic nurses, and surgeons in affected countries.  

• They run projects targeting neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that cause blindness, such as trachoma control programs and mass drug administration.  

• Their Eye Health Strategy centers on improving quality, coverage, and equity in eye care services.  

• They also champion advocacy, disability inclusion, and the rights of women and children.  

By combining direct services, capacity building, research, and policy advocacy, Sightsavers addresses both immediate needs and structural challenges.

In 2025, Sightsavers is encouraging supporters to participate in their #EyeCreation challenge, sharing creative representations of eye shapes alongside stories of why eye health matters.  

Other organizations: Prevent Blindness & Orbis International

Prevent Blindness

This is a U.S.-based nonprofit closely aligned with World Sight Day goals. In 2025, Prevent Blindness will host free vision screenings, educational events, and a Congressional briefing in Washington, DC, all aligned with the “Love Your Eyes” theme.   They partner with the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) and other member organizations.  

Orbis International

Orbis is another global NGO focused on eliminating preventable blindness. Their approach includes training eye care personnel, running eye hospitals, using mobile surgical units, and advocating for eye health in underserved countries.  Since 1982, Orbis has trained over 325,000 eye care personnel and provided care to millions worldwide.  

How You and Your Community Can Participate

#LoveYourEyes is a movement that includes everyone, from individuals to governments. Here’s how you can get involved, locally and globally.

Individuals: love your eyes daily

• Get a regular eye exam. Many conditions (glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy) are silent early; screening is essential.

• Wear eye protection. Use UV-filtering sunglasses outdoors and protective eyewear in risky settings.

• Reduce screen strain. Practice the 20-20-20 rule (every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds).

• Good lighting. Avoid dim or overly harsh lighting when reading or working.

• Healthy habits. A balanced diet, controlling blood sugar, not smoking, all help protect vision.

Schools, workplaces & communities

• Organize vision screening events. Invite local optometrists, NGOs or health departments to your school, workplace, or community center.

• Use the campaign resources. The IAPB and its partners provide posters, social media tiles, toolkits, and more.  

• Promote eye health awareness. Host talks or training sessions for teachers, employees, parents about signs of vision problems.

• Share stories. Encourage community members to share how vision care changed their lives using the hashtag #LoveYourEyes.

• Partner locally. Work with local health clinics, NGOs, or eye care professionals to extend reach.

For health professionals and NGOs

• Advocacy and policy engagement. Encourage local decision-makers to invest in eye health, include eye care in universal health coverage plans.

• Strengthen local capacity. Train more ophthalmic personnel and support sustainable eye health systems.

• Screening and referral networks. Build systems such that people in remote areas can be screened, referred, and treated.

• Monitor equity. Ensure women, rural communities, and marginalized people have access to eye care services.

See the Future, Act Today

World Sight Day 2025 and the #LoveYourEyes theme is an invitation, to reflect, to commit, and to act. The overarching message? Eye care should be accessible, available, and affordable for everyone, everywhere.  

Here’s what we ask of you:

• Make a pledge. Join the campaign’s goal of one million pledges demanding that leaders take action on eye health.  

• Get your eyes tested by 9 October. Use World Sight Day as a personal deadline to check your vision.

• Share your story. Whether you wear glasses, had surgery, or care for someone with vision loss, your story can inspire others.

• Support organizations. Donate to or volunteer with organizations like Sightsavers, Prevent Blindness, Orbis, or local eye health NGOs.

• Engage your leaders. Write to local representatives, health ministers, or community leaders asking them to prioritize eye health in their budgets and policies.

• Start in your circle. Encourage your family, school, church, workplace to host an eye health day in October.

Why does your action matter? Because change starts one person at a time. When you get screened, you protect yourself. When you speak up, you raise awareness. When you help a neighbor or child access glasses, you change a life. When communities demand better eye care systems, leaders listen. Over time, that builds a world where no one loses sight of avoidable causes.

Conclusion

This World Sight Day 2025, let us all commit to #LoveYourEyesnot just as a hashtag, but as a practice, a movement, a demand for change. Vision is more than just seeing clearly: it is about opportunity, dignity, connection, and the ability to live life fully.

We have powerful allies in this fight. Sightsavers, with its decades of experience, large programs, and deep commitment to equity, shows us how change is possible. Prevent Blindness and Orbis bring expertise, reach, and impact.

But none of this works unless you take part. Whether you get an eye test, share your story, volunteer, donate, or speak to officials, your action matters.

Let’s stand together, worldwide, and say: I love my eyes, and I want everyone to see.

Get involved on 9 October 2025 and beyond. #LoveYourEyes