Providing the Assistive Tools for Success

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Meghana Aduri. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.

India, some estimates show, is home to 30% of the world’s visually-impaired people. During the COVID-19 pandemic, 17-year-old Meghana Aduri saw firsthand how lack of sight can create limitations for otherwise very capable people when she engaged the services of a remote music teacher skilled in Carnatic music. Meghana, an accomplished singer and violinist, quickly learned he was blind but still experiencing success with his music.

“He was the first person to show me that visual impairment doesn’t have to limit someone’s capability or skill,” Meghana says, noting his success in singing competitions and national recognition.  “As I spent time under his guidance, learning music, I also saw some of the challenges that he faced.”

His college finals, however, presented a challenge. A passing grade was required for graduation, but none of his study material was in an accessible format. Often, those who are visually-impaired rely on scribes and facilitators when studying or testing, so Meghana offered to help.

As she recorded textbooks as audio files on her phone, she was struck by how inaccessible even basic educational resources are for this population and how simply converting a book could change someone’s future.

“What I felt wasn’t sympathy; it wasn’t pity. It was empathy. I wanted to create change, and then I started to wonder how many more students were out there just like him, who were bright and driven, but who were being held back,” Meghana recalls. ” I couldn’t just stop at one person, because there are so many out there who are left without access to equitable education.”

Meghana contends with low vision, herself. It’s an issue, for example, that can leave her vulnerable when she can’t see the board during swimming competitions, but it also follows her into the classroom. She deeply relates to and feels a moral responsibility to the population she supports as the founder of Vision Beyond Sight, the nonprofit she started in 2021.

Growing up, Meghana’s parents modeled the importance of helping others. They often traveled to India to visit family, adding volunteering to the itinerary.

“They would take me to local orphanages where I would help serve meals and donate clothing and candy that we brought from the U.S. Those early experiences were incredibly formative,” she explains.

She credits the experience with making her more empathetic as well as fueling her desire to commit to a long-term initiative when the inspiration hit. Today, Meghana continues to coordinate the conversion of textbooks and exams with her organization’s Accessible Digital Books Project. Together with volunteers and partnerships with nonprofits VT Seva and Saksham, she has completed 140,000 pages of material that will benefit thousands of people across the globe. She hopes to one day use AI to further streamline the process.

Meghana has also raised over $50,000 that she uses to sponsor assistive devices for the visually-impaired. For the past three years, she has organized Seedlings4Education and grows vegetable plants in her sunroom, selling them in stores when they become seedlings. In total, the organization has raised and sold 8,000+ plants that paid for 400 devices to aid in education.

In January, Meghana launched a college scholarship program to help talented, underserved students with visual impairments. So far, three beneficiaries have been named. One of them is Mayank, who comes from a remote village in Bihar and is 80% blind as well as being an amputee.

“Over half of those who are visually impaired have another kind of disability,” Meghana notes.

After sailing through a highly competitive entrance exam in India, Mayank received offers of admission from prestigious universities across the country. Sadly, he wasn’t able to attend, because his family couldn’t afford the fees.

“Once they gain admission into a university, they have to pay a huge entrance fee, and they only have two weeks to do that,” Meghana explains. “Regardless of the scholarships that they apply for, or even if they get loans from the bank, they can’t secure any of that in that two-week time span.”

With Vision Beyond Sight as a sponsor, Mayank will attend a well-respected technology school in Mumbai this fall.

“A lot of these students are the first in their families to go to college, to even earn a stable income. But this impact stretches farther than just them,” she emphasizes. “It impacts the community around them. It impacts generations after them. It’s changing their entire generation.”

Meghana also raises funds for scholarships by teaching local violin lessons. That particular skill branched out into a separate initiative when, a couple of years ago, a summer internship took her to the remote tribal village of Allampally, India. As she played for residents, she was struck by the kids’ enthusiasm for learning, many of whom had never even seen a violin. She continues to hold lessons via Zoom for around 60 students, and hopes to establish a music school there when she returns this summer.

“Even the smallest effort, a few hours a week, can have a huge impact, and that’s really what I’ve learned through this process,” she says.

Though India is home to many visually-impaired people, the need for help extends beyond the borders, and Meghana anticipates Vision Beyond Sight expansion into various African countries with the help of Saksham.

As she prepares for her senior year in high school, Meghana is focused on her own future and is weighing her interests in both social entrepreneurship and finance while applying to colleges. In the meantime, she is helping improve the lives of eager, talented people who might otherwise be left behind due to their disability.

Meghana encourages others to find an organization or mission they’re passionate about and highlights the importance of asking for what you want.

“Initially, I was very reluctant to reach out to organizations like Saksham. They’re big organizations, and I was just a high schooler. What could I do?” she says. “But don’t be afraid to ask. The worst they can say is no.”

It’s her willingness to take chances and her deep-seated empathy that has enabled Meghana to implement far-reaching programs pushing for inclusion and equity for the visually-impaired community. It’s also what makes her a Point of Light.

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Meghana? Find local volunteer opportunities.