Lord Low appointed Patron of Fight for Sight
Lord (Colin) Low of Dalston CBE has been appointed Patron of the UK’s leading eye research charity Fight for Sight. His new role will involve raising awareness of the need for eye research and supporting the charity’s fundraising efforts.
Lord Low, who has been blind since the age of three, has been a lifelong campaigner for the rights of blind and disabled people for which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2000. He served as Chair of RNIB from 2000 to 2009 and has been a crossbench member of the House of Lords since June 2006 when he was created a life peer as Baron Low of Dalston.
Michele Acton, CEO of Fight for Sight, said: “We are delighted that Lord Low has agreed to become a Patron and support us in our efforts to stop sight loss. With real progress being made in the development of potential gene, stem cell and drug therapies and the use of new technologies to diagnose and treat eye disease, the pace of change has never been so rapid. “With Lord Low’s support, we look forward to building on developments by raising the profile of the need for eye research and campaigning for greater financial support.”
Lord Low added: “I am very proud of my new role as Patron of Fight for Sight. Millions of people in the UK and around the world lose their sight as a result of eye diseases and conditions that we can’t prevent or treat. The only hope is through investment in medical research. Sadly, eye research is woefully underfunded which is why I want to do all I can to support Fight for Sight in their efforts to change this.”
Alongside his role as Patron of Fight for Sight, Lord Low is also Vice-President of RNIB and has been President of the European Blind Union.
Lord Low, who has been blind since the age of three, has been a lifelong campaigner for the rights of blind and disabled people for which he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2000. He served as Chair of RNIB from 2000 to 2009 and has been a crossbench member of the House of Lords since June 2006 when he was created a life peer as Baron Low of Dalston.
Michele Acton, CEO of Fight for Sight, said: “We are delighted that Lord Low has agreed to become a Patron and support us in our efforts to stop sight loss. With real progress being made in the development of potential gene, stem cell and drug therapies and the use of new technologies to diagnose and treat eye disease, the pace of change has never been so rapid. “With Lord Low’s support, we look forward to building on developments by raising the profile of the need for eye research and campaigning for greater financial support.”
Lord Low added: “I am very proud of my new role as Patron of Fight for Sight. Millions of people in the UK and around the world lose their sight as a result of eye diseases and conditions that we can’t prevent or treat. The only hope is through investment in medical research. Sadly, eye research is woefully underfunded which is why I want to do all I can to support Fight for Sight in their efforts to change this.”
Alongside his role as Patron of Fight for Sight, Lord Low is also Vice-President of RNIB and has been President of the European Blind Union.