Mariah Dechavez

About Mariah Dechavez

I was born in the Philippines but grew up in Stratford, Newham, growing up attending weekly mass at St Margaret’s Church in Canning Town, where a strong Filipino community has long been rooted. Newham is home to one of the largest Filipino diasporas in London, with Tagalog now among the borough’s most spoken languages.

I volunteer with Filifest, a youth-led organisation in London celebrating Filipino culture, where I host our annual festival (in 2025 held in Stratford) and create media content.

Professionally I am a Programme Officer for Education and Culture at A New Direction, a non-profit organisation based in Newham that supports young people across London to access cultural education and creative learning. Alongside this, I co-produce Frame of Reference, a podcast where early-career creatives share personal, unpretentious takes on art history and visual culture.