ADVOCACY. ART. SERVICE.

"Just because you have physical proximity to an individual, or a community; it doesn't mean that you have actually positioned yourself to be receptive, discerning and appropriately responsive to their needs. It takes active learning, loving and listening. Individuals and communities are not projects." - Mayia Warren, 2021

Mayia is an award winning invisible disabilities, albinism and chronic illness advocate and philanthropreneur. She utilizes the vehicles of creative communication, traditional artistry, media, music, writing and digital content to establish effective initiatives within the disability arena. As an individual who navigates multiple invisible chronic conditions, she endeavors to use her life experiences as a tool for impact. Her artistic abilities have been showcased as a form of education and entertainment, representing different aspects of her personal and community experience over the past 11 years. 

Through the platform of The Better Not Bitter Podcast Mayia provides a space for individuals living with various medical conditions, disabilities, and chronic illnesses to have their life experiences heard. The initial goal of the podcast was designed for advocacy, educational purposes, citing the need to demonstrate the impact of health challenges and disability in ways that have not been previously depicted in mainstream media formats. Since its inception, the podcast has grown into a resource for disability and advocacy organizations, parents of children with disabilities, fellow advocates, and those seeking to gain a better understanding of the journey of their loved ones. 

In the vein of creativity she stewards an online presence on YouTube, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Each of these cites chronicle her journey with multiple chronic health conditions, the issues that the overall communities of disability and chronic illness face. She regularly plans, designs and implements advocacy and awareness campaigns via social media and organizational partnerships. These modes occur with the intent to serve through the utilization of social media, as a tool from the creation process, to research and engagement practices. 

In the scope of Mayia’s community endeavors, she currently serves in conjunction with several local, state and global organizations as a resource, ambassador, mentor,  speaker, and consultant. She provides much insight into the realities of: diversity that often exclude people with disabilities for the sake of meeting popular quotas, hypocritical practices within the D.E.I space, mental health as a key feature of the experience of individuals navigating the world differently, experimental and impactful youth/young adult programming, creating advocacy content that serves, ableism and more. 

Mayia currently lives in Greensboro, NC as a full time advocate. She continues to serve locally, statewide, nationally and internationally. If the last decade has taught her anything it’s that God is undefeated in how He has written her story thus far. Every day she gets to watch as a new page unfolds as God uses her life experiences with pain as an opportunity to advocate, create art and serve. 

Memberships, Ambassadorships, and Organizational Partners

• The Savage Truth Network
• The Exceptional Children’s Assistance Center
• Disability :IN North Carolina
• The National Organization for Albinism and Hypopigmentation 
• The North Carolina Division of Services of the Blind
• Chronic Joy Ministries  
• Adobe Express
• Unfixed Media Productions