<![CDATA[Environmental care is an important character trait that should be instilled from an early age, including in students with mild intellectual disabilities. This study aimed to describe and analyze in depth the perceptions of students with mild intellectual disabilities in defining environmental care. A qualitative approach with a phenomenological design was employed. The participants consisted of ten students with mild intellectual disabilities as the main informants and one teacher as the supporting informant at SLB Manunggal Slawi, Tegal Regency. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, observations, and documentation. The data were analyzed using NVivo 15 through coding, theme development, and data interpretation. Data validity was ensured through technique triangulation. The findings revealed that students with mild intellectual disabilities possessed a fairly good perception of environmental care. They interpreted environmental care in simple terms, such as maintaining classroom cleanliness, disposing of waste properly, and caring for plants around the school. However, their perception of more complex concepts, such as organic and inorganic waste segregation, remained highly limited. This perception was subjectively constructed through concrete daily experiences, modeling from surrounding figures, and routine habituation implemented in the school environment. ABSTRAK Kepedulian lingkungan merupakan salah satu karakter penting yang perlu ditanamkan sejak dini, termasuk pada siswa tunagrahita ringan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan dan menganalisis secara mendalam persepsi siswa tunagrahita ringan dalam memaknai sikap kepedulian lingkungan. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dengan desain fenomenologi. Subjek penelitian terdiri atas 10 siswa tunagrahita ringan sebagai informan utama dan satu guru sebagai informan pendukung di SLB Manunggal Slawi, Kabupaten Tegal. Data dikumpulkan melalui wawancara semi-terstruktur, observasi, dan dokumentasi, kemudian dianalisis menggunakan NVivo 15 melalui proses pengkodean, pengembangan tema, dan interpretasi data. Keabsahan data diuji menggunakan triangulasi teknik. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa siswa tunagrahita ringan memiliki persepsi yang cukup baik mengenai kepedulian lingkungan. Mereka memaknai kepedulian lingkungan secara sederhana sebagai aktivitas menjaga kebersihan kelas, membuang sampah pada tempatnya, dan merawat tanaman di sekitar sekolah. Meskipun demikian, persepsi mereka terhadap konsep yang lebih kompleks, seperti pemilahan jenis organik dan anorganik, masih sangat terbatas. Persepsi ini terbangun dan dikonstruksikan secara subjektif melalui pengalaman konkret sehari-hari, proses meniru (modeling) figur di sekitarnya, serta pembiasaan rutin yang diterapkan di lingkungan sekolah. ]]>
