Suffering from visual imparities is already enough of a struggle in a world that is ruled by images. The daily life quality depends largely on those alternative ways that allow the access to information. It is not an easy life or an easy world for the visually impaired, but happiness is just a little step away with a little help from the rest of the population.

Most people can´t even imagine what it feels like to be in complete darkness and not being able to do simple things like watching a movie or taking a picture, reading the menu of a bar or driving a car. The level of dependence to other people is sometimes disheartening. It is a more dramatic situation for those who weren´t born that way, but that have been forced into that position by a disease or an accident. Imagine what it feels like to wake up into a world that no longer has colors.

If you could follow the previous statements and understand a little of what it means to be visually impaired or blind, you understand that it is very important that we can all work together as a society to make the world a more inclusive place and instead of rejecting those with different abilities than the ones you might have, we can embrace difference from a helping point of view and make sure they have equity of choice and access to information.

To put it into other words, they are already living a complex life to add another handicap to it.

There is a sense of dependence that comes when people have a visual imparity and comes from having to reach out to ask help to do most things that are just regular to most of us. That is really decimating to self-esteem but also to the independence needed to feel happy as an adult. Some of the articles in this blog speak about the apps, services, entities and corporations that are giving this problem the true relevance it has and prioritizing the investment of their money in R&D for a minority, instead of looking the other way and playing fool.

visually impaired child
technology for visually impaired

Those technology developments that make a difference in people´s everyday life is worth mentioning such as those companies that work hard to make the world a better place.

For example, the fact that Microsoft has decided to give a third-party money to develop a narrator for a product that is already a best seller and will be for as long as there are desktop and laptop computers is amazing. Or the fact that Apple developed the VoiceOver technology and offers it in every iDevice they sell when those products are already best-sellers is also an amazing step forward in a world that sometimes takes steps to the sides where the money is instead where they can help more people.

Another amazing example is the NVDA people who have built an entire multimillion company over a manifesto and is run by a minority dedicated to a minority. The push that they have to make their own lives better and those like them is inspiring to say the least. The software that a single visually impaired man designed is being used in at least 15 countries and translated into more than 50 languages while remaining completely free and open source to continue to grow indefinitely.

Regardless of how bad the world seems at times, there is still hope somewhere out there. Cases like the ones described in this blog restore faith in human kind and make us think that a future in which people is more tolerant, empathic and loving is possible. The lives of some of us, who are just as much of a world citizen as we are need a little help to be happy and fulfilling in a world in which screens rule. Why not go the extra mile when you have the chance to do it?

apps for visually impaired

If we all try together, maybe we can make a more inclusive, better world.