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Looking Back to the 2nd, and Forward to the 3rd World Glaucoma Days
Building on last year's pilot experience, the 2nd World Glaucoma Day - celebrated on March 12, 2009 - was definitely a success. One could have feared that the 'novelty' might have worn off, but it hasn't. On the contrary, people seem to have rolled up their sleeves and gone down to work - more than last year! Again, hundreds of events were organized worldwide. The number of 'Google hits' (i.e., pages fetched at Google under 'World Glaucoma Day') exploded to more than 84000 and the effect seemed to be sustainable: one week after the WGD, dedicated individuals from around the world kept sending us information on the events they organized, and submitting tips for next year. It is as though glaucoma specialists in every country felt empowered by the backing of a strong global network to launch their local events. In the words of a national leader: "The WGA provided the tools and the know-how to propagate our messages."
From the flow of online-event submissions, two clear trends emerge: The first is a confirmation of last year's feeling that the grassroots component of WGD mobilization is at least as strong as the institutional. The second is a shift towards a 'Let's-Do-It' rather than a 'Let's- Talk-About-It' attitude as compared to WGD1. Indeed, last year it was the 'Media events' that led the pack: Press releases, newspaper articles, TV/radio coverage... This year, people put their efforts initially on screening events - to the extent that the need to make some noise around those screening activities had to be highlighted in the heading of a Newsletter. Both trends are very encouraging: they mean, in a nutshell, that the global glaucoma community is ready to Walk the Talk!
With the experience of the first two celebrations of the Day, the WGD committee is gearing up its efforts to make the third observance of the day, on March 12, 2010, a record-breaker. The aim will be to increase glaucoma awareness to new heights - documenting in measurable terms its global impact - and to roll-out a coordinated global screening effort that will set the bar for future screening campaigns. To achieve these goals, twelve months will barely be enough, and we will initiate the preparations much earlier than in the last two years, through regular Newsletters and new features on the WGD website. So stay tuned, and start thinking how you will contribute to the record-breaking success of the 3rd World Glaucoma Day!
On behalf of the WGD committee,
George N. Lambrou, World Glaucoma Day Project Leader
