Helen Keller International is dedicated to saving the sight and lives of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged. We combat the causes and consequences of blindness and malnutrition by establishing programs based on evidence and research in vision, health and nutrition. We currently have more than 100 programs in 20 African and Asian countries, as well as in the United States.

We envision a world where…

No one suffers from preventable or treatable blindness or low vision;
No one suffers from malnutrition; and
Fewer people suffer loss of their productive years due to disability and premature death.

Part of our work is focused on preventing blindness and vision loss by providing better access to basic eye care services like prescription eyeglasses and cataract surgery; screening and treatment for diabetic retinopathy; vitamin A supplementation for young children at risk of malnutrition; and prevention and treatment of neglected tropical diseases.

We are also dedicated to reducing malnutrition, especially for women and children. Our programs promote positive nutrition practices for mothers and young children; ensure the fortification of staple foods like wheat flour and cooking oil with essential nutrients; help reduce instances of vitamin A deficiency through supplementation for children under five; improve food security for impoverished communities through family-led agricultural practices; and build the capacity of local health workers to manage cases of acute malnutrition in their communities.

Through our work, we provide access to resources and education for under-served communities, professional training for doctors and health workers, and a voice for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged through advocacy at the government level. We also conduct extensive research and evaluation of our programs to ensure that the solutions we provide are effective.

HKI designs programs to have lasting impact by building local ownership and capacity, strengthening existing systems, and focusing attention and resources on building resilience. Achieving sustainable development requires full partnerships with governments, communities, civil society and the private sector that are based on a shared vision, open communication and mutual accountability.

HKI believes the most effective programs and operational systems are evidence-based and contextually relevant. They are rooted in state-of-the-art knowledge and local situational analysis. We design and test innovative approaches to current challenges and utilize rigorous evaluation to maximize impact and develop new knowledge.

HKI holds ourselves to the highest ethical standards. We are a responsible steward of resources and we conduct all our activities with integrity and transparency, continuously striving for increased efficiency and effectiveness. Read more.

HKI prides itself on the quality and rigor of our work in combating the causes and consequences of blindness and malnutrition through programs based on evidence and research.

We are share a key selection of HKI-affiliated publications — including peer reviewed articles, books and training materials, and research or program briefs prepared by HKI staff — that summarize what we've learned over many years as a leader in eye health, nutrition and neglected tropical disease programs.

HKI's progress indicators include:

Number of trained eye doctors and cataract surgeries
Screening, treatment, and referrals as needed for those with diabetic retinopathy, which can lead to vision loss.
Screening of disadvantaged youth in the United States and the provision of free prescription eyeglasses.
Support to governments and private sector companies in large-scale food fortification continued in
countries across Africa
Reaching consumers with vitamin A-fortified cooking oil and iron folate-fortified wheat flour.
Providing treatments to people struggling with five disabling and disfiguring diseases in six countries in Africa.
Distributing vitamin A capsules and doses of deworming medication to children from 6 months to five years old.

Last year alone, we helped provide many tens of millions of people with treatment to prevent diseases of poverty including blinding trachoma and river blindness. Surgeons trained by our staff also performed tens of thousands of cataract surgeries in the developing world. And in the United States, we screened the vision of nearly 66,000 students living in some of our country's poorest neighborhoods and provided free eyeglasses to just over 16,000 of them.

Since 1990, our Enhanced Homestead Food Production programs throughout Africa and Asia have empowered thousands of families to provide better nutrition for themselves and ensure food security by producing their own nutritious foods in home gardens and farms.

Targeting communities with high malnutrition and child mortality rates, we promote positive nutrition practices including breastfeeding and complementary foods to ensure children receive enough vitamins during critical stages of development.

We train community volunteers and health workers to identify and treat cases of acute malnutrition in children, ensuring the knowledge and skills become part local health systems and empowering communities to help themselves in times of crisis.

Since the 1950s, Helen Keller International has supported the control and treatment of trachoma in Africa. To date we have helped deliver tens of thousands of sight-saving trachoma surgeries in poor communities and will continue working toward the global trachoma elimination date of 2020.

We have helped develop an effective and efficient platform that reaches tens of millions of people across Africa each year for the prevention and treatment of river blindness.

As young children are especially vulnerable to infection, we help developing countries effectively and efficiently provide deworming medication and health education for children in at-risk communities.

Working with national governments in countries with the highest rates of affliction, we are helping communities not only eliminate lymphatic filariasis, but treat those suffering from physical disabilities caused by the infection.