The short-film Eye Mitra: Friends Of the Eyes, produced by Essilor’s inclusive business arm, 2.5 New Vision Generation, has won an award in the category Transforming Society at the 2016 tve Global Sustainability Awards, held in London on Monday 28 November. ‘Eye Mitra’ was one of two Essilor films shortlisted among over forty entries for being inspiring, high-quality films that drive home the message of sustainability.
The film focuses on the Eye Mitra program, an inclusive business model launched by Essilor in India in 2013 which is today creating strong social and economic impact by addressing the critical issue of uncorrected vision needs. The program has to date enabled over 2,000 under-employed men and women in rural and semi-urban areas to be trained in primary vision care and to gain the skills necessary to successfully set up and develop their own micro-businesses. Eye Mitra not only contributes to improving livelihoods through job creation in areas that today suffer from a drastic shortage of primary vision care providers, but also delivers clear and tangible benefits for individuals, their families and their communities at large through improved access to quality vision care.
Sumit Kumar, Marketing Manager 2.5 New Vision Generation India, who attended the Awards Ceremony, comments: “It is an honor for the 2.5 New Vision Generation team to receive this award. Most people do not know that poor vision is the world’s largest disability, yet seeing clearly cuts across many of the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. We hope that our film can now reach an even broader audience and create more awareness on the vital role that vision care can play in global development.”
tve Global Sustainability Film Awards in association with Fastflow Group were held for the 5th consecutive year to put the spotlight on companies driving environmental and social change. The awards include four categories: Transforming Society, Reshaping the Economy, Protecting the Environment, and the Net Positive Leadership. This year’s winners included FREITAG lab. Ag, HSBC/WWF-UK, Electrolux and Essilor International.
About tve
tve is a media charity that creates and enables others to create powerful, effective communications about the environment and development. Through film, animation, documentaries, debates and social media, the media charity reaches global audiences, giving a voice to a new generation committed to a greener and fairer world.