Living with Low Vision Seminar

About the Program

Category: Libraries (Best in Category)

Year: 2023

The Miami-Dade Public Library System (MDPLS)Living with Low Vision Seminar began in 2018 out of a partnership with the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind. The Living with Low Vision Seminar includes speakers from various organizations who serve Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties such as The Alliance for Aging, The Miami Lighthouse for the Blind, the Division of Blind Services and The University of Miami Evelyn F. McKnight Brain Institute, Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, and the American Diabetes Association. The event has taken place at six locations over the past 4 years and has included keynote speakers who are medical doctors specializing in areas related to vision loss as well as free eye exams by an ophthalmologist. The latest Living with Low Vision Seminar included a tactile multi-sensory art exhibit with an environmental theme. Participants were encouraged to touch and feel the art to experience the exhibition. QR codes were provided with an audio file so participants could use their phone to hear a full description of the art piece by the artist. Each Low Vision Seminar begins with jazz music by a local blind musician who plays music created by blind composers and includes a 20-minute chair yoga segment in the middle of the event to help participants relax and focus. Miami-Dade County also provides sign language interpreters at no cost to Miami-Dade Public Library System. The Living with Low Vision Seminar has assisted, educated, and enhanced the lives of over three hundred disabled residents in Miami-Dade County. Over 300 people with visual disabilities have been assisted by attending the Living with Low Vision Seminar since 2018.