Two million people around the world who suffered blindness can now see, thanks to an Australian charity and its partners.
The charity is the Fred Hollows Foundation, and its chief executive, Brian Doolan, says the moment when people realise they can see because of it is endlessly moving.
"We call it the 'Fred moment.' When that little patch comes off, that's when they smile. When they hear that voice, they turn, they see that child, they see that partner, they see whoever it is."
Tragically, four in five of the approximately 32 million current cases of blindness around the world could have been avoided.
It is that figure which has propelled the Fred Hollows Foundation and its partners since 1992.
Dr Sanduk Ruit, a partner of the foundation, is known as "the barefoot surgeon" in his native Nepal.
He says the partnership targets countries like his.
"Together, we have a vision and train people, trying to carry and take high-quality eye care to developing countries."
The developing countries at risk include, for example, Ethiopia, where more than a million people were treated for eye ailments just last month.
Brian Doolan, the foundation chief executive, says curing blindness can, among other issues, help people gain work when they otherwise would not contribute to the economy.
"Every dollar you spend on eliminating avoidable blindness, at least $4 is returned to the community. So it has a cost. Avoidable blindness costs nations."
What began as a conversation between Fred Hollows, his wife Gabi and friends like Dr Ruit has become an institution.
Gabi Hollows is the founding director of the foundation.
In its 25 years, the foundation has trained a quarter of a million specialist eye surgeons, nurses, health workers and teachers.
It has built or equipped 4,000 medical facilities and educated close to 7 million schoolchildren and community members in eye health.
Mr Doolan says one of its greatest achievements in Australia has been drastically reducing the incidence of trachoma among Australia's Indigenous population.
"We are right on the cusp of the elimination of trachoma. In Fred's time, it afflicted maybe 60 to 80 per cent of many communities, including Indigenous communities. Today, it's less than 4 per cent."
Dr Ruit's next plan is to open an eye hospital in Bhutan.
It is a prototype he hopes can be rolled out in dozens of developing countries over the coming years.
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