The real problem of blindness is not the loss of eyesight. The real problem is the misunderstanding and lack of information that exist. If a blind person has proper training and opportunity, blindness can be reduced to a physical nuisance. |
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Upcoming Events
Fall 2010: State Conventions
Each year, all of the 52 NFB affiliates hold their own annual state conventions that focus on more local issues. These conventions generally feature substantive blindness-related programming, deliberations on state and local policy matters, administration of internal organizational business, special exhibits of interest to members, and more. Some of the upcoming state conventions are listed below; for information on all state conventions, visit the state conventions web page.
Affiliate Date Location
Arizona September 10-12 Phoenix
North Carolina September 10-12 Burlington
West Virginia September 10-12 Wheeling
Iowa September 17-19 Des Moines
Montana September 17-19 Billings
October 2010: Meet the Blind Month
Meet the Blind Month is our nationwide campaign to increase awareness of and support for the National Federation of the Blind (
What's New
Vote for the 2011 NFB Youth Slam
on the Pepsi Refresh Project
Thank you to all who have voted daily in August and who told all of their family and friends about our opportunity to win a grant of $250,000 from the Pepsi Refresh project. Because of your hard work, the 2011 Youth Slam is still in the running to win the grant in September. Help make the 2011 Youth Slam a reality by continuing to vote daily throughout September! Please vote using all three methods: 1) text 101913 to 73774, and use both options available through clicking the vote button on www.refresheverything.com/nfbyouthslam by 2) signing in directly with Pepsi and 3) logging in with Facebook. For more information about previous iterations of the NFB Youth Slam, please visit www.blindscience.org/ncbys/Youth_Slam.asp. For those of you encountering difficulty with the site, please see the detailed instructions for online voting for further assistance. Sign up now to receive daily e-mails or text messages reminding you to vote. NFB flyers with our voting information, in full-page and four-per-page formats, are now available for printing and distribution; hand them out at events like local fairs or football games to help spread the word!
NFB Announces 2010-2011
Race for Independence
The National Federation of the Blind today announced the 2010-2011 Race for Independence, an annual campaign to raise funds for the NFB Imagination Fund, which supports the education, technology, and research projects of the NFB Jernigan Institute, as well as programs conducted by the 52 affiliates and over 700 local chapters of the Federation. NFB members can sign up to be Imaginators at www.raceforindependence.org. The Race for Independence will be spotlighted in public NFB events, particularly the public debut of a vehicle equipped with a nonvisual interface allowing a blind person to drive it independently. A Ford Escape, equipped with nonvisual interface technology, will be driven by a blind individual who will navigate part of the famed Daytona International Speedway course on January 29, 2011, as part of the pre-race activities at the 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona. Four of the top Imaginators from the 2010 Race for Independence campaign and six Imaginators from the current campaign will have special opportunities to participate in the Daytona event. To be eligible to become one of the six Imaginators from this campaign selected to participate in this event, Imaginators must raise at least $250 by December 1, 2010. For more information please read the official press release or visit www.raceforindependence.org.
Blind Driver Challenge Receives
Top NIWeek Award
The NFB Blind Driver Challenge—an innovative effort to create a nonvisual interface that empowers a blind person to operate an automobile—received the 2010 Application of the Year Award at the National Instruments Graphical System Design Achievement Awards ceremony held during the NIWeek annual conference in Austin, Texas. In response to a challenge issued by the National Federation of the Blind, students and researchers at Virginia Tech—using National Instruments technology—developed a semi-autonomous vehicle that allows a blind driver to successfully navigate, control speed, and avoid collision while traversing a closed driving course. The Virginia Tech/TORC Blind Driver Challenge team project also received the Graphical System Design Achievement Award in the Robotics category. For further information on this exciting achievement, please read the official press release.
