Beyond Borders: Global Mental Health Conference

Learners with albinism and mild intellectual developmental disorder (MIDD) in Soweto township demonstrate resilience as they navigate complex and intersecting challenges within their educational and social environments. Moving beyond visibility, this study foregrounds how these learners respond to barriers associated with visual impairments, visible physical differences, and cognitive and adaptive limitations, highlighting their capacity for strength, adaptability, and persistence. This phenomenological study explored resilience among learners with albinism and MIDD in Soweto township trough the Ubuntu lens. Six participants were purposively selected from a Learners with Special Educational Needs (LSEN) school. Data were generated through individual interviews and the draw-and-narrate technique, allowing participants to express their lived experiences through both verbal and visual forms. Thematic analysis revealed that resilience is enacted through personal agency, adaptive coping strategies, and, importantly, through relational support systems embedded in school and community contexts. Framed within an ubuntu perspective, the findings position resilience as a relational and contextually grounded process rather than an individual trait. The study highlights the role of inclusive practices, supportive relationships, and contextually responsive interventions in strengthening learners’ sense of belonging and capacity to thrive. By aligning with an ubuntu framework, the study emphasises that resilience is co-constructed through interconnectedness, care, and shared humanity, offering important implications for inclusive education in contexts such as Soweto township.