Ken Richardson, former President and COO of Hughes Aircraft, from left to right; Yulun Wang, Ph.D, Chairman and CEO of InTouch Health; Michael Lazarovits, Executive Director, Braille Institute Santa Barbara, attend the “Active Aging with Low Vision: Focus on Technology” presentation. Photo by Monie Photography.
SANTA BARBARA — Technology leaders recently shared insights on the evolution and future of technologies for the visually impaired at a Braille Institute Santa Barbara community education event titled Active Aging with Low Vision: Focus on Technology.
Guests enjoyed a presentation by Yulun Wang, Ph.D., Chairman and CEO of InTouch Health and pioneer in health technology and robotic surgery; a panel discussion on the future of technology for those facing progressive and permanent vision loss featuring Ken Richardson, former President and COO of Hughes Aircraft and author of Hughes After Howard, The Story of Hughes Aircraft Company and demonstrations of new technologies, including NuEyes ODG Smart Glasses, and three Braille Institute Santa Barbara expert staff members Nate Streeper, Library Coordinator; Tracy Alfino, Technology Specialist and Greg Benavidez, Access Technology Specialist.
“At Braille Institute, technology is a vital resource to achieve our mission to help those facing progressive and permanent vision loss navigate daily tasks and lead independent lives,” said Michael Lazarovits, Braille Institute Santa Barbara Executive Director. “The community’s response to our event series is a great validation that there are more individuals, families and organizations still to be reached with the benefits of the technology education and training and many other services we provide completely free of charge.”
The presentation was a part of the Braille Institute’s Active Aging with Low Vision free community education series which aims to raise awareness about local resources for people and families experiencing low vision or blindness. It was made possible thanks to the generous support of the Elaine F. Stepanek Foundation.
Braille Institute staff are planning their next community presentation to focus on cutting edge treatment technology for people with vision loss. The presentation is scheduled for Monday, June 13 at Braille Institute Santa Barbara and will pair local area expert Dennis Clegg, PhD, Professor and Wilcox Family Chair in BioMedicine at UCSB with his colleague Amir Kashani, MD, PhD, USC Assistant Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology and Principal Investigator at the USC Roski Eye Institute to review the latest in stem cell research as a novel therapy for people with sight loss due to age-related macular degeneration. For more information, or sign up to get the monthly Braille Institute newsletter visit www.BrailleInstitute.org/join or call 1-800-BRAILLE (272-4553).
About Braille Institute: Braille Institute is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to eliminate barriers to a fulfilling life caused by blindness and severe sight loss. It serves tens of thousands of people of all ages each year through a broad range of educational, social and recreational programs and services designed to help people of all ages with vision loss lead enriched and fulfilling lives. Funded entirely by private donations, all services are completely free-of-charge. Braille Institute Santa Barbara is online at www.brailleinstitute.org/santabarbara, on Facebook (BrailleInstitute) and Twitter (@BrailleInst).