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Help create adjustable focus sunglasses

Help fund the development of adjustable focus sunglasses & create the joy of eyesight for the World.

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Help create adjustable focus sunglasses

Help create adjustable focus sunglasses

Help create adjustable focus sunglasses

Help create adjustable focus sunglasses

Help create adjustable focus sunglasses

Help fund the development of adjustable focus sunglasses & create the joy of eyesight for the World.

Help fund the development of adjustable focus sunglasses & create the joy of eyesight for the World.

Help fund the development of adjustable focus sunglasses & create the joy of eyesight for the World.

Help fund the development of adjustable focus sunglasses & create the joy of eyesight for the World.

Wsl vdM
Wsl vdM
Wsl vdM
Wsl vdM
1 Campaign |
Durham, United States
$2,150 USD 39 backers
4% of $50,000 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal



An innovative invention with an ambitious social mission: FocusSpecs UV are adjustable focus sunglasses, providing a perfect solution for those who cannot afford traditional prescription glasses, for those who live in remote or poorly-serviced areas, and for those who find the cost of prescription sunglasses prohibitively high.

Your contribution will help us develop a new sunglasses model of our already successful FocusSpec adjustable glasses, and it will help spread the joy of better vision to some of the 1 billion people globally who are forced to live without the glasses they need.

Stay updated and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, and our Wordpress Blog!

This campaign is an initative led by the Dutch/US non-profit Focus on Vision and its affiliated US social enterprise FocusSpecs.com

We have previously featured on SparkNews, NRC, NOS, New York Times, Le Monde and ZDF
Media enquiries can be sent to sunglasses@focusspecs.com


One billion people need but cannot acquire a pair of corrective eye glasses. Ninety-percent of them reside in the developing world.

So many are forced to live with uncorrected vision because: 1) prescription glasses are too expensive, especially if you live on less than $2/day; and/or 2)  eye health professionals who would be able to prescribe corrective glasses are inaccessible or non-existent, especially in developing countries.

 

As a result:

o  People's quality of life is drastically reduced, limiting their personal potential in the process 

o  Young people perform poorly in school and/or are forced to drop out before completing their education

o  Adults find it more difficult to earn a livelihood

o  Elderly people are made dependent on others, and they can no longer read or sew

o  Developing countries lose over $400 billion per annum

In order to help address these various issues, we invented the FocusSpecs, a first of its kind, mass-produced, user-adjustable pair of corrective eye glasses that is not only affordable for people in the developing world, but can be delivered without the services of an optometrist.

 


Building upon a lens principle discovered by Nobel-Prize winning scientist Luis Alvarez, we developed and patented a simple but revolutionary mechanism which utilizes two sliding lenses in front of each eye, allowing the user to adjust the glasses to the exact strength they need (like a pair of binoculars). With a diopter range of between +0.5 and +4.5 (for near vision) and -1.0 and -5.0 (for distance vision), the FocusSpec corrects up to 90% of cases of near- and far-sightedness. This adjustability makes it easy to distribute the FocusSpecs to even the most remote areas, where no professional eye health care is available.

 

 

 

  

 

This past year we have been listening closely to those we aim to serve, and over and over again users in both the developing and developed parts of the world have asked for a sunglasses version of the FocusSpec.

People (especially youth) in developing countries – even if they have access to spectacles – often hesitate (or refuse) to wear them because of the social stigma associated with glasses.  In these parts, where the sun almost always shines, and where people spend much of their daily lives out of doors, a pair of corrective sunglasses offers a stylish, socially-acceptable option, thus increasing uptake and compliance for both young and old. In addition, users' eyes will  benefit from UV protection.

While in the United States, Europe and Australia, people find the cost of  and extra pair of prescription sunglasses prohibitively expensive, especially when they are worn so infrequently. ‘Why not a pair of FocusSpec sunglasses for those days on the beach, or for use while skiing, or to keep in the car,’ they have asked.

Enter: FocusSpec UV.

 


We strive to minimize the costs of the glasses, especially because they must prove affordable for people everywhere in the world, even in the developing world. For this reason, the new high quality lens tinting process we aim to develop not only has to accommodate the complexities of our adjustable focus lens system, but it has to be a low cost method at scale. To develop such a process, we require funding for extra research and development. Funds raised will cover the costs of development and production of the first one thousand sunglasses.

Your support will allow us to reach a new milestone in our mission. We will deliver a new and different type of sunglasses, one that people will love wearing everywhere.

To reward you, we provide the satisfaction of knowing that you have given the gift of sight to people in need, and we offer you exciting other perks as a personal ‘thank you’ gesture, ranging from a pair of FocusSpecs UV for yourself to a trip to join one of our project teams to your choice in Africa or Asia where you will help distribute FocusSpecs to those in need.

One of the rewards we offer in return for donations: giving you the opportunity to be one of the first owners of a brand new pair of FocusSpecs UV, a unique gadget and ideal as spare pair of corrective sunglasses. (Photo: A. Dols)


If we do not reach the full amount needed to realize the development of the Focusspec UV Sunglasses, our backers will receive regular FocusSpecs instead, and the remaining funds will be used to distribute our glasses in the developing world. If we raise more than our goal, the extra funds will be used to increase the size of our first production lot, as well as to distribute even more glasses to those in need.

 

 

Our mission: Creating the joy of eyesight.... everywhere.

Since 2009, we have supplied more than 200,000 FocusSpec glasses to children and adults in over 53 countries, including the US and Europe, where sales subsidize our efforts to reach those in the developing world.

 


Our FocusSpecs have helped transform lives around the world:



Good vision is clearly about much more than just seeing well! 

We are strongly committed to our goal to have distributed 10 million glasses by 2020 and creating the joy of eyesight for young and old around the world.

We sincerely hope that you join with us as we continue our fight for sight.
 



Watch the above video and meet our founder, Jan in't Veld, a Shamengo pioneer of the world.

 

 

The FocusSpecs Uganda team: Asuman, Wessel, Charles and John.
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Choose your Perk

Donate a pair of FocusSpecs

$20 USD
Donating a pair of FocusSpecs means helping someone in the developing world to see. We have worked in over 40 countries and every pair of glasses we donate makes a huge impact on the lives of people who otherwise would not be able to afford or access a pair of glasses.
7 claimed

1 pair of regular FocusSpecs +

$40 USD
Support our work and receive a pair of FocusSpecs as 'thank you' gesture from us. Surprise a friend or family member during this festive season with these adjustable glasses, a fun gadget and ideal as spare pair. - Each eye adjusts separately - Can adjust for ranges from +.5 to +4.5 diopters Cost of shipping to the US or Europe included; for the rest of the world, please add $9.
6 claimed

1 pair of regular FocusSpecs -

$40 USD
Support our work and receive a pair of FocusSpecs as 'thank you' gesture from us. Surprise a friend or family member during this festive season with these adjustable glasses, a fun gadget and ideal as spare pair. - Each eye adjusts separately - Can adjust from -1.0 to -5.0 diopters Cost of shipping to the US or Europe included; for the rest of the world, please add $9.
1 claimed

Get 1 pair of Focusspecs UV

$50 USD
Help us make this innovation come true and you will be one of the first persons in the world to receive a brand new pair of the FocusSpecs UV sunglasses. Cost of shipping to the US or Europe included; for the rest of the world, please add $8.95.
5 claimed

Give 1 + Get 1 Sunglasses

$75 USD
With this donation you will give 1 pair of regular FocusSpecs to a person in the developing world, and you will be one of the first persons in the world to receive a brand new pair of the FocusSpecs UV sunglasses. Cost of shipping to the US or Europe included; for the rest of the world, please add $8.95.
2 claimed

Give 3 + Get 2 Sunglasses

$165 USD
With this donation you will give 3 pair of regular FocusSpecs to people in the developing world, and you will be one of the first persons in the world to receive two brand new pairs of the FocusSpecs UV sunglasses, both in plus and minus versions (for reading and for seeing at a distance). Cost of shipping to the US or Europe included; for the rest of the world, please add $10.95.
1 claimed

Give 15 + Get 2 Sunglasses

$400 USD
With this donation you will give 15 pairs of regular FocusSpecs to people in the developing world, and you will be one of the first persons in the world to receive two brand new pairs of the FocusSpecs UV sunglasses, both in plus and minus versions (for reading and for seeing at a distance). Cost of shipping to the US or Europe included; for the rest of the world, please add $11.
1 claimed

Give 100 + Get 2 Sunglassses

$2,020 USD
You are guaranteed to make a high impact with this donation, which will be enough to give 100 people 20/20 vision (enough, for example, to provide every child in an African school with a pair of regular FocusSpecs!). As a bonus, you will be one of the first persons in the world to receive two brand new pairs of the FocusSpecs UV sunglasses, both in plus and minus versions (for reading and for seeing at a distance). Cost of shipping included.
0 claimed

Give 100 in Person+Sunglasses

$6,000 USD
This donation will offer the unique and rewarding opportunity to join us on our mission to create the joy of eyesight - in person! The perk includes: --a round trip economy class airfare to one of our field projects in Africa or Asia --up to 3 days participation in a vision screening and distribution outreach campaign --the use of a private car and driver during the outreach --100 FocuSpecs for inclusion in the distribution campaign --2 FocusSpec UV sunglasses Excludes accommodation and food.
0 claimed

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