What is BYTE?
BYTE is a “by youth, for youth” organization that focuses on empowering and promoting youth throughout the Yukon and Canada’s north. Our community outreach team travels to communities throughout the Yukon and to some areas of Northern BC and NWT to deliver innovative and relevant workshops to northern youth. We also host events and conferences that foster creativity and culture. We invest in protective factors for wellness to ensure young people feel seen, heard and valued. We do this by creating spaces where youth can discover and express their unique identities, by fostering spaces where youth can build relationships of support with adults and peers, by teaching and modelling skills for life and leadership, by centering and sharing youth perspectives in an adult-centric world.
Our name, BYTE, used to stand for “Bringing Youth Towards Equality”. However, in 2015, we re-branded and now our name is just BYTE – Empowering Youth Society. We made this decision because our mission is to meet youth where they are at and support them to get where they want to go, rather than to bring them somewhere.
Our Mission: We create spaces for Northern youth to create connections, find wellness, and lead their communities. We do this by;
- Fostering spaces and relationships where youth feel seen, validated and connected
- Offering pathways for employment and leadership
- Amplifying youth voices for change
Our Vision: We want to create a future where in the North, young people are validated and celebrated for their unique voices and expression in their personal and professional lives. They have a sense of belonging, identity and acceptance within their community and strong relationships with peers and adults; and they have the tools they need to follow their passions and trailblaze change in their communities.
Our Values:
- Youth at the Centre: Youth perspective and voices are the centre of all we do.
- Trailblazing: We are making a better world by challenging systems and creating new ones
- Non-Judgement and Respect: We meet people where they are at and we see and value the unique skills and strengths of Northern youth.
- Authenticity: Showing up genuinely as yourself is the way to make change
- Learning and Adaptation: We are always learning and unlearning, we can always do better.
- Accountability and Transparency: We do what we say and we we will do, we own our mistakes.
- Healthy relationships: Our relationships – with ourselves, with others and our community – are at the core of life
- Environment: Our environment is our home and we must care for it and support it
- Reconciliation : We believe in the ongoing recognition of Indigenous rights and lands, knowledge, perspectives and experience
- Social Justice: We believe in a fair and equitable division of resources, opportunities and privileges in society
BYTE – Empowering Youth respectfully acknowledges that we are situated on the traditional territory of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta’an Kwäch‘än Council and we will acknowledge the Traditional Territories when we travel to northern regions.