About Us
Who we are
We are Delana Mitchell-Sandiford and Kern Pariag, Year Two students in the Master of Education (M.Ed.) programme at the University of the West Indies (UWI). This website is created in partial fulfilment of our course, EDSE 6001: Nature and Needs of Exceptionalities. Our shared goal is to turn evidence and lived experience into clear, practical guidance that promotes inclusion for persons who are blind or visually impaired in Trinidad & Tobago and the wider Caribbean.
Our Mission
Seeing potential → enabling participation.
We aim to:
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Raise public awareness about what visual impairment and blindness are (and are not).
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Bridge research and practice so families, teachers, classmates, employers, and community groups know how to support inclusion.
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Champion accessibility—from classroom materials and exams to streets, services, and workplaces.
Visual Impairment and Blindness
When someone’s vision cannot be restored to a normal level they are said to have vision impairment.
Loss of visual acuity or the inability of the eye to perceive objects as clearly as usual can lead to vision impairment. A loss of visual field in which the eye cannot see as wide an area as usual without moving the eyes or turning the head could also be the cause.
The severity of a person’s vision loss can be expressed in a variety of ways. Low vision is defined by the World Health Organization as having a visual field of 20 degrees or less or visual acuity between 20/70 and 20/400 with the best possible correction...Read More
A child’s understanding and functioning in the world are altered when they have vision impairment. A child’s cognitive, emotional, neurological and physical development may be impacted by vision impairment because it may limit the variety of experiences and information a child is exposed to...Read More
Statistics on Visual Impairment and Blindness
Global Perspective: At least 2.2bn people have a near or distance vision impairment...
Caribbean Perspective: Blindness in the Caribbean is estimated at 1%, according to the Barbados Eye Study (BES), although this figure may be higher...
Trinidad and Tobago Perspective: T&T has approximately 27,787 people aged over 40 years old with MSVI and 3799 people who are blind...
Our Aspiration
Join Us in Making Change
We aim to educate, empower, and engage communities in understanding visual impairment and blindness. We’re committed to guiding individuals with visual impairment and blindness toward the resources and support systems they need, while fostering greater awareness and sensitivity to visual impairment and blindness among the wider public.
