HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh Joins Orbis at Battersea Power Station: Powering Up Sight-Saving Charity Work
The Third Annual Orbis Visionaries Reception Sets its Sights on 2030
21st May 2025
Last night, Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Edinburgh, attended the third annual Orbis Visionaries reception at the historic Battersea Power Station, in London. In her role as the Global Ambassador for the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, Her Royal Highness has witnessed Orbis’s impactful work in Ethiopia, Bangladesh, and India, over many years. The event was held inside the historic Control Room A and was also attended by other high-profile guests including Susannah Constantine and Tom Davies.
The Orbis Visionaries reception showcased innovative approaches to providing eye care and the charity’s plans for the next five years. Today, 1.1 billion people live with vision loss globally, yet 90% of cases are avoidable. The majority of those affected live in low- and middle-income countries where health services can be difficult to access.
The global economic impact of untreated sight loss is estimated to be $411 billion in lost productivity. Without items like glasses or cataract surgery that we take for granted in the UK, children can miss out on educations, adults can lose their livelihoods, and falling into poverty can become inevitable.
Since 1982, Orbis has been working across the globe to train eye care teams, and expand eye health services, so those living with sight loss can be found and treated. Orbis also operates the world’s only fully accredited ophthalmic teaching hospital on board a plane, the Flying Eye Hospital.
Closing the Vision Gap – Reaching More People by 2030:
The event featured a panel discussion led by renowned TV presenter and journalist Helen Fospero, where Orbis experts discussed tackling avoidable vision loss and addressed key issues such as access to eye care for women and children, and improving vision to support work. The panellists and points mentioned included:
Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Edinburgh
“I have been lucky enough to travel with Orbis through my work with the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness as Global Ambassador, and I have seen for myself so many times the very effective operations that are carried out in varying situations. The wonderful thing about eye solutions is that it’s so simple. We have the technology. We have the know-how. We just don’t have the spread of capability. I had a wonderful trip to Ethiopia, which is the country with the largest number of people with blinding trachoma in the world, and although they face a massive uphill struggle, we’ve already seen huge improvements in interventions.”
Professor Nathan Condon, Director, Research and Tech Advisor, Orbis International
“Of the 1.1 billion people living with vision loss, about half is people who have near vision impairment. These are people that just need a pair of reading glasses, something that we could go to Boots Opticians and get within fifteen minutes, but which is unavailable for most of the world’s population.”
Lucia Mvula, Country Director, Orbis Zambia
“In Zambia, we have far flung communities that do not have access to services when they need them the most, especially children. In some cases, we have children arriving at the health centre or the hospital late with retinoblastoma, an eye cancer. Without early intervention, by the time they get into the hospital, it’s probably too late. We want to bring services as close to these communities as possible.”
Dr. Alemayehu Sisay, Country Director, Orbis Ethiopia
“Ethiopia still carries the largest share of the global burden of trachoma. Nearly 200,000 people in the country suffer from the blinding form of the disease, and more than half of those at risk across the world live there. Eliminating trachoma by 2030 is our top priority. It should not be a disease affecting mothers and children in the 21st Century. That is our vision for Ethiopia.”
The Orbis Visionaries evening was supported by OMEGA, who have contributed to Orbis’s sight saving work since 2011. For the Orbis Visionaries reception, the Swiss watchmaker offered a Speedmaster 38 mm Orbis timepiece which, through a silent auction. Along with providing vital funding for the Orbis Flying Eye Hospital, OMEGA has also supported Orbis’ work through the provision of teddy bears for young patients, as well as through global awareness campaigns featuring brand ambassadors such as Cindy Crawford and Daniel Craig.
Royal Visits:
In October 2023, Orbis welcomed The Duchess of Edinburgh to their work in Hawassa, Ethiopia, where Her Royal Highness witnessed dedicated health workers screening for and treating the painful eye disease trachoma, and met teachers assessing children for the condition, as well as other sight loss issues.
Orbis is proud to have also welcomed The Duchess to visit to their Flying Eye Hospital project in 2013 in Kolkata, India, and then again to Dhaka and Chattogram, in 2017, where she saw their work first-hand, training local eye care professionals and supporting the community.
The Road to 2030:
The next five years leading up to 2030 are critical to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to end poverty and inequality, by ensuring people have their health, justice and prosperity. It is critical that no one is left behind and vision plays a key role.
By accessing quality eye care, lives and local economies can be transformed in areas where it is needed most. Orbis has a vision for 2030 and will continue to save sight worldwide through expanding school screening programmes, delivering projects for low-income workers, and training the next generation of eye care professionals.
If you would like to find out more about Orbis’s work, and how you can help, visit their website: www.orbis.org.uk
