Blind and Visually Impaired

An umbrella term used in accessibility research and practice to encompass people whose vision is significantly reduced, from partial low vision (for example, reduced acuity, contrast sensitivity, or field of view) through total blindness. The term includes people who are congenitally blind, those who have lost vision later in life, and those with progressive or fluctuating eye conditions. Estimates place the global BVI population at over 250 million. BVI users rely on a mix of assistive technologies — screen readers, refreshable Braille, magnification, audio description, tactile graphics, and emerging haptic and AI-driven image-access tools — and design practices that respect their heterogeneity of residual vision, onset age, and preferred modalities.