The NVRI is delighted to announce it has secured a three-year funding agreement with Victorian Lions Foundation.
The pledge of support is the latest in a long history between our two organisations, which first began in 1974 before the Lions Vision Research Fund was officially established in 1979. With the benefit of Lions’ funding over the past five decades, the NVRI has been positioned to pursue valuable research and contribute findings to the broader vision research field in Australia and internationally.
The new funding agreement follows a shift in our work towards translational, clinical research which aims to improve access and equity in eye care. This step in the NVRI’s research is closely aligned with the ethos and mission of the Australian College of Optometry (ACO), which the NVRI sits within. The ACO is focused on improving eye health outcomes through direct clinical services to underserved communities, as well as evidence-based professional development to optometrists across Australia and New Zealand.
Tim Fricke, Director of Research and Education shared, “The NVRI’s rich and diverse 51 years of achievements – in understanding amblyopia (lazy eye), vision measurement, vision rehabilitation, optic nerve structure, crystalline lens biochemistry, and visual neuroscience – would not have been possible without the support of the Victorian Lions Foundation and our other valued partners. With this latest investment, we’re looking forward to launching our new research program firmly focused on providing outcomes that will improve the lives of people with vision loss immediately and into the future.
We strongly believe that our research is critical to fairness and social cohesion, and that the pivot to public health research fits the current economic, social, civic, and political needs of the Australian community. With the generous support and trust from Lions, the NVRI is well positioned to develop vision research that will have direct public health impacts. Lions support is foundational to the development of our re-focused research program, but we also look forward to leveraging their support to expand funding avenues. The NVRI’s path ahead is exciting.”
