In 2018, Mattika joined the Step Ahead team to develop an innovative foster care program for refugee and asylum-seeker children living in Bangkok's Immigration Detention Center. After the 2019 MoU was signed to end the detention of children, Mattika pioneered a program called Freedom for Families in collaboration with other like-minded NGOs to pursue the release of mothers from detention on bail and reunite them with their children.  

Mattika continues to give oversight to these Step Ahead projects as Director of Programs. She is passionate about ensuring that all children in Thailand grow up in safe and nurturing families. She believes strongly in collective impact and contributes as a committee member of the Convention on the Rights of the Child Coalition Thailand (CRCCT) and Strong Families Alliance Thailand (SFAT).