In Oct, we concluded our Digital Awareness Campaign in Ethiopia, which ran from August 15 to October 15. While the campaign was underway, the KTG team, myself and our global student ambassador Pemije Gadimoh attended the COECSA Conference in Addis Ababa, where we raised awareness about preventable childhood eye conditions and connected with doctors and eye health professionals from across the region. For more about our participation, read our article on the COECSA conference here
The Ethiopia campaign marked the final Africa campaign for 2025. Time has truly flown, it’s incredible to see how far we have come this year, from Uganda to Ghana and now Ethiopia. Still, our work does not stop here. We continue to revisit earlier conversations,deepening engagement with professional associations,re-engaging with partners and networks from countries where we previously ran digital campaigns, establishing additional student chapters, and recruiting more ambassadors and volunteers across multiple countries.
We are also delighted to welcome new volunteers who have joined the Know The Glow movement: Melese Kitu from Ethiopia, Dr. Charles Laizer from Tanzania, Dr. Eric Nguemadjibaye from Chad and Dr. Ambali Olamilekan from Nigeria. Each of them brings a strong commitment to creating awareness around leukocoria, a glow in a child’s eye that can be an early sign of several preventable eye conditions. They are already integrating this message into hospital work and community outreach to reach more parents and caregivers.
Looking back at 2025, we are proud of how much the Know The Glow movement has grown, reaching thousands of families, engaging more volunteers and ambassadors, and expanding our presence across multiple African countries.
2025 was not without personal and organizational challenges, including the California wildfires that affected members of our KTG community and other difficult moments within our team. Yet through the team’s resilience, and with the support of our global community, we continued to move forward, remaining focused on our mission and the children we serve.
We are grateful to our partners, including hospitals, NGOs, and universities, who have supported our campaigns and shared our mission of early detection of childhood eye conditions. Their collaboration has been invaluable in helping us reach communities and raise awareness across the continent.
As we close the year, we are excited for 2026, starting with our digital awareness campaign in South Africa in March, and look forward to expanding our network of volunteers, ambassadors, and partners to reach even more children with critical eye health messages. We have begun engaging doctors, NGOs, cancer foundations, and other partners to build a strong foundation for the work ahead.
We continue to advocate for increased funding, collaboration, and participation in awareness creation for the 0 to 5 age group within global health initiatives, foundations, and organizational CSR programs. More than 80 percent of childhood eye conditions are preventable if identified early, and greater investment in awareness can help make that a reality.
To support or collaborate with Know The Glow, please visit our website or reach out directly to explore partnership and funding opportunities.
Together, we can ensure no child’s vision is left behind.
