CNIB announces that Deloitte Canada has donated 300 smartphones to the Phone It Forward program. This donation will support and empower people with sight loss across Canada to live more active, independent lives.

Modern smartphones are life-changing tools in the hands of individuals who are blind or partially sighted. The Phone It Forward program takes modern, gently used smartphones; refurbishes them; outfits them with accessible apps and puts them directly into the hands of Canadians who are living with sight loss. Recipients are also provided with training on how to use their new smart devices with confidence.

With these devices in hand, people with sight loss are able to do things that may have seemed challenging before – from travelling safely alone using GPS to reading prescription labels and taking medication safely to connecting with loved ones.

Click HERE for the full press release.

Transitions Optical has named the winners for its annual Transitions Innovation Awards program, which recognizes both individuals and companies for their innovative efforts to support Transitions^® lenses.

“Honoring this incredible group of Transitions Innovation Awards winners and finalists was a perfect way to round off our 25^th anniversary celebration of Transitions Academy,” said Drew Smith, director, North America channels, Transitions Optical. “Our winners’ and finalists’ creativity and achievements are inspiring, and we are thankful for their continuous engagement and innovation with the Transitions brand.”

Canadian Eyecare Practice of the Year

The Canadian Eyecare Practice of the Year title recognizes independent eyecare practices in Canada that are actively promoting healthy sight to their patients and within their local communities, and who have demonstrated excellence in supporting Transitions lenses.

• Winner: MAVUE Marie Trudel (Quebec City, Quebec)
  • Finalists: Optométrie Gravel (Thetford Mines, Quebec) and Sun City Optics (Kamloops, British Columbia)

Canada Retailer of the Year

The Canada Retailer of the Year title is awarded to a retailer in Canada for actively supporting Transitions lenses and demonstrating a commitment to enhancing the vision of their customers and communities.

• Winner: Newlook Lunetterie•Eyewear
  • Finalist: Costco Optical

2021 Transitions Brand Ambassador

The Transitions Brand Ambassador award celebrates an individual who best showcases their dedication to be an influential advocate of Transitions lenses.

• Winner: Jennifer Chinn, O.D. – Dr. Chinn’s Vision Care (San Diego, California)
  • Finalists: Mélissane Bourque, optician – Opto-Réseau Pointe-aux Trembles (Montreal, Quebec) and Michelle Selway, regional optician advisor, training and coaching – BonLook (Western Canada)

Click HERE for the full press release.

In conjunction with World Ocean Day, two senior executives are offering thought-provoking environmental insights to deepen the eye care industry’s understanding of how plastic neutrality benefits practices, patients, and communities worldwide. The fireside chat with CooperCompanies Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel at CooperCompanies Dan McBride and Plastic Bank Founder and CEO David Katz is now available at one-day-better.ca

Acknowledging the vital role that plastics play in everyday life, the executives discuss why plastic neutrality is a model quickly capturing people’s attention. In 2021, CooperVision introduced the world’s first plastic neutral contact lensesby purchasing credits from Plastic Bank’s collection, processing and reuse of general ocean-bound plastic waste that is equal to the weight of the plastic contained in designated products. It has grown to become the largest plastic neutrality initiative in the contact lens industry.

To date, the initiative has made a significant environmental and social impact worldwide. In 2022, the equivalent of 32 million plastic bottles have been prevented from polluting the oceans and the equivalent of nearly 60 million plastic bottles has been collected since the program’s inception. Collectors and their families in 171 coastal communities have directly benefited from exchanging ocean-bound plastic for necessities such as clean water, groceries, cooking oil, school tuition, and even health insurance.

“CooperVision has significantly expanded sustainable practices within our facilities over the past several years, including recycling, reuse, water conservation, and energy conservation. As a medical device manufacturer, plastic plays a critical role in the hygienic delivery and sterile protection of our products around the world. The Plastic Bank partnership extends our commitment with an innovative plastics collection model, made even more meaningful through its social mission,” says McBride. “It creates a circular ecosystem that reflects our vision of plastics being responsibly used, recovered, and reborn in perpetuity.”

Circularity—which is the continued, regenerative reuse of plastic—creates exponential value and change, according to Katz. When a piece of material is collected, recycled, placed back into manufacturing, and reintroduced to a consumer in a new form, the ecosystem grows. It’s not a linear effect, but one that spirals outward for continual impact.

Click HERE for the full press release.

Eschenbach Optik of America introduces the new Magno Lumina Max Lamp which is an ideal light for those with vision loss from macular degeneration and other eye diseases.

The lamp is available in a desktop and floor version each of which provides superior illumination with energy-efficient LEDs and five brightness settings. The lamp also provides light in five different colour temperatures – from the warm and slightly golden 3000K to a cool 6500K, similar to the natural daylight. The brightness and colour temperature can be selected by using the touch pad buttons on the lamp control panel or from the wireless remote control which also features an extra-dim “night light” setting, an auto-off timer function, and quick reference brightness and colour settings.

The lamp’s gooseneck-style arm is 25” long and rotates 270° and a cover over the LEDs which blocks 65% of distracting blue light. The sturdy metal base on the floor lamp has an anti-slip pad on the bottom to keep it from sliding and the desk version features a table clamp option that fits onto the side of a table or desk.

Click HERE for the full press release.

Devoted to offering products that enhance the feeling of well-being, Ba&sh offers a sunwear collection which indulges femininity and elegance. The Lidi model, which revives a vintage aesthetic with its geometric shape and transparent acetate, is a must for strutting down the streets on sunny days!

Distributed by Lanctôt: www.rlanctot.com