Over Shades Of Love

In short:
We collect sunglasses for indigenous people in the highest altitude regions of the world. In the Himalayas, Karakoram and Andes, 85% of the people living in extreme altitudes and conditions suffer from eye diseases in their lifetime, due to the intense UV radiation in these mountain villages.

We gradually prevent this from happening.

In recent years we have collect hundreds of thousands of sunglasses for children, women and men in need. We combine humanitarian aid with adventure and appreciate any contribution and help!

In longer:
85% of the population throughout The Himalayan and Andean ranges suffer from eye diseases, cataracts, blindness, or eye cancer in their lifetime.
In average, these people live in altitudes between 3500 and 6000 meters above the sea level and are hence more exposed to the extremely damaging UV-Rays of the sun than people elsewhere on this planet. In addition, the ozone layer is ceasing, resulting in the ultraviolet rays being filtered even less. At the same time, the affected indigenous mountain folks are working on open fields and plains every day and throughout the whole year, to contribute to the local subsistence economy and to provide food for their families.
Furthermore, there is no access and financial resources to purchase sunglasses in boutiques or outdoor shops. The life among Mount Everest, K2 and other massifs is very ascetic and simple and rarely disturbed by tourists, which means that there is no access to sunglasses and shops.
Ultimately, they have no other choice than exposing themselves to the destructive and brutal force of the sun. Consequently, these unique folks are migrating to the cities and lower valleys, leaving their homes and traditions behind.
Shades Of Love has distributed hundred thousands of sunglasses to these people to protect them.

To take on the challenge of supplying all people in need, we are tightly working together with local medical institutions, such as hospitals and mobile eye care centres. Together with the mobile eye clinic „The Tibetan Health Care Center“ for example, we conduct clinical eye operations on-site for up to 200 people, per day.

However, our simple and unorthodox principle concerns the prevention of such operations and eye diseases.

We manage everything from the collection of the sunglasses, over the logistics, to the direct hand-to-eye distribution. We go beyond the common paths and access the most remote regions of the world to preserve the livability, health and culture of some of the most unique and pertinacious people of the world.