Author: Matthew Horspool

World Braille Day, 4 January 2026

ICEVI and WBU Launch “More Braille: More Empowerment” Global Campaign to put Braille Literacy back at the centre of Inclusive Education

The International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI) and the World Blind Union (WBU) today launched More Braille: More Empowerment, a new global campaign calling on governments, educators, disability organisations, families, and the private sector to treat braille literacy as a right, not a privilege.

World Braille Day — marked each year on 4 January, the birthday of Louis Braille — celebrates a system that has unlocked literacy, education, employment, and independence for generations of blind people. Yet in too many places, access to braille is still determined by geography, income, and whether trained teachers and appropriate materials happen to be available. This campaign is a global push to change that.

“Braille isn’t a ‘nice-to-have.’ It is literacy, full stop,” said Santosh Kumar Rungta, President of the World Blind Union. “I know from personal experience that braille can be the difference between dependence and freedom. This campaign is about ensuring that every blind learner — child, youth, or adult — has the tools and teaching to read, write, and participate on equal terms.”

“Families should not have to fight alone to secure their children’s right to literacy,” said Ms Susan LaVenture, President of ICEVI. “As a mother of a son who faced a serious eye condition, I know how quickly doors can close when accessible learning supports aren’t available. This campaign is about reopening those doors — through teacher support, practical resources, and stronger national commitment.”

Campaign resources

As part of the launch, ICEVI and WBU are releasing and sharing the following campaign resources:

• ICEVI E-News World Braille Day issue, 4 January 2026 (in English, French and Spanish) – featuring messages from campaign leaders and partners, and updates from the ICEVI regions
• Video montage: “More Braille: More Empowerment — Voices Advancing Braille Worldwide” – a short film bringing together voices from around the world who are working to strengthen access to braille

What the campaign will do

From 4 January 2026 to 4 January 2028, the campaign will deliver coordinated action in three areas:

• Advocacy and media that are culturally and linguistically relevant across regions
• Information resources for teachers, families, organisations, and policymakers, covering topics such as braille teaching strategies, braille codes, national braille authorities, and device options
• Research to generate global evidence on braille access, use, barriers, and impact

The campaign is being advanced in collaboration with a growing group of partners, including organisations working on accessible publishing and braille innovation.

Call to action

WBU and ICEVI invite partners and allies worldwide to:

• Champion braille as a foundation of inclusive education and lifelong learning
• Invest in teacher preparation and braille instruction
• Expand access to braille materials and affordable braille technology
• Use evidence to drive policy change, so braille access is systematic, not accidental

Individuals and organisations are also invited to support the campaign by making a small donation to light a virtual candle on Louis Braille’s 217th birthday cake, symbolising their commitment to the right to braille literacy worldwide. All donations support the campaign’s work at global and regional levels.

To light a candle, visit the ICEVI’s dedicated braille campaign webpage.

About WBU

The World Blind Union (WBU) is an internationally recognized organization representing 338 million blind and partially sighted persons in 190 member countries.

We are the voice of the blind, speaking to governments and international bodies on issues concerning blindness and low vision in cooperation with our members.

About ICEVI

ICEVI is a global non-governmental membership organisation that promotes equitable access to quality education for children and young people who are blind, deafblind, or have low vision. It works through advocacy and policy influence at international, regional, and national levels; knowledge sharing and publications; and collaborative partnerships across its seven world regions.

For media inquiries

World Blind Union

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.wbu.ngo

International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.icevi.org

As we begin 2026, and following the immensely successful launch on World Braille Day of the joint ICEVI–WBU Global Braille Literacy Campaign, More Braille: More Empowerment, we would like to share with you the link to the campaign launch video montage:

More Braille: More Empowerment – Voices Advancing Braille Worldwide

This montage is 35 minutes in length and brings together 23 voices and reflections of members of the Steering Committee and Working Groups for the three campaign focus areas, campaign partner organisations and campaign sponsors.

We hope you enjoy the many voices and perspectives represented in the video montage. We look forward to strengthening advocacy, expanding access to braille, and advancing the right to braille literacy for learners and adults worldwide in 2026 and beyond.

Celebrate the wonder of Braille through creativity with the VICTA Braille Art Competition!

The competition is open to visually impaired children and young adults from 0 to 29 years. There are different age categories to enter into with different themes, a category for school entries, and amazing prizes up-for-grabs, so it’s time to go dotty for Braille.

Read more on the VICTA website

This survey forms the final study of a PhD being conducted by Aasha Rose.

The aim of her research is to understand how braille literacy influences key aspects of life, such as independence, social engagement, and personal well-being, for people who learned braille. Your insights will help her better understand the real-world impact of braille on daily living, identify areas where support can be improved, and contribute to developing strategies that promote accessibility and inclusion for people with vision loss.

Complete the survey

A message from UKAAF:

Dear All

I am writing to let you know about the news that we received recently that Jim McCafferty sadly passed away over Christmas. Jim was a huge supporter of UKAAF and Braille.   I have written the tribute below to him.

We pass our condolences to Jim’s family and friends from all at UKAAF.

In Memory of Jim McCafferty

(1953–2025)

A tribute from Susan Day Chair of the UK Association for Accessible Formats (UKAAF)

It is with great sadness that I write, on behalf of UKAAF, to remember Jim McCafferty, who died on Christmas Day. Jim was a much-respected colleague, trustee, editor, and friend, and his contribution to accessible formats — and to UKAAF in particular — was both profound and enduring.

Registered blind from the age of three, Jim learned braille at the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh, and it remained central to his life ever since. As Jim himself so powerfully expressed: “Braille has had a massive and very positive impact on my life, and to be perfectly honest, I really do not know how I could do without it.” Braille enabled Jim to live an independent, informed and fulfilling life, both personally and professionally, and he was a passionate advocate for ensuring others could do the same.

Jim devoted more than 40 years of his career to braille production and proofreading, including many years with the Scottish Braille Press. His expertise, attention to detail, and deep understanding of braille were widely respected across the sector. Even following his retirement, Jim continued to support Sight Scotland as a supply braille proofreader — a reflection of his lifelong commitment to quality and access.

Within UKAAF, Jim served with distinction as both a trustee and, for nearly 11 years, as editor of Format Matters. In this role, he played a vital part in shaping discussion, sharing best practice, and strengthening collaboration across the accessible formats community. His editorial leadership was thoughtful, rigorous and generous, always grounded in the belief that accessible information changes lives.

Jim spoke openly about the practical value of braille in everyday life — from managing personal records to ensuring privacy and confidentiality — but he was equally passionate about encouraging new learners. His advice was always clear and heartfelt: “Give learning braille all you’ve got. You don’t need to know the system intricately, but learning the alphabet and numbers will allow you to communicate and keep track of important information. It will help you maintain your independence and improve your life skills.”

Jim’s legacy lives on through the many people who benefited from his work, his guidance, and his advocacy. On behalf of UKAAF, I extend our deepest condolences to Jim’s family, friends and colleagues. He will be remembered with great respect, gratitude, and affection, and he will be greatly missed by all of us who had the privilege of working alongside him.

Susan Day

UKAAF Chair

Back in April, RNIB announced that it was to cease Personal Transcription and outsource this service to a third-party commercial organisation. This decision was shared widely across social media and elicited a strong response.

Following an initial meeting and a series of focus groups during the Summer, RNIB has now announced that it will retain a Personal Transcription service for braille music in-house, recognising “its unique value to our users”. This will be free of charge.  All other personal transcription, including large and modified print music, will continue to be outsourced to an external provider, and will likewise continue to be subsidised by RNIB.

Read Sound Without Sight’s response here

A new Blind-first and a11y-first audio-based game aimed at increasing typing skills and #Braille literacy. Multiple game and input modes, fun sounds, and you earn tickets with each round that you can use to get silly prizes when you cash out at the Prize Counter! Practice your Perkins typing with the home-row setting and your grade 2 symbols and word signs. I’m still iterating, but enjoy this initial release. Go whack some moles!

Braillio is a braille typing tutor you can use anywhere.

Learn braille without any special equipment.

Use a standard keyboard! F, D, S and J, K, L keys operate as braille input keys.

Fully voiced without the need for outside screen reading software.

Just log in from the browser on just about any device.

Uncontracted and Contracted UEB Braille.

Learn more

Welcome to Brailliance by Themis Games!

Brailliance is a puzzle game where you guess the word by adding up braille dots. This game has been carefully crafted to be playable by everyone, and it includes multiple accessibility features for people with blindness and other disabilities. For players with unhindered sight, tap the keyboard as you normally would and enjoy the challenge. For everyone else, the game is fully compatible with popular screen readers and can be played with a number of different input methods including keyboards and accessibility shortcuts.

Find out more and play the game!

Seeing Hands has released a new small Braille project:

As a celebration of the new year, we’ve made a Braille calendar generator. This can create a file showing the calendar of any year or years which can be used to mark events. Because it’s designed for any display with the ability to edit a Braille file, and technically anything that can read one, this doesn’t have the same feature set that a calendar application on a notetaker might have but if you are using something that doesn’t have one, this might be of some use. It mostly depends how you like to use a calendar, and it can still be limiting for users of small displays.

It’s quite a small thing, but I hope people find this useful, and if you have any ideas for how we can improve this, we’d appreciate any feedback. You can find the tool at https://s.seeinghands.org/calendar