For Their Own Good & That of the Planet

BYBS offers resources for professionals and digital content for young people to help them cope with eco-anxiety and develop resilience in the face of climate change.

Endorsed by

Why BYBS?Inspiring emotional resilience in the face of climate change

At BYBS, we are creating a new future for our children and youth. One that gives them hope and agency over their lives while promoting environmental awareness, climate change education, and social justice.

Scientific Research

Our professional development resources and digital content are developed in light of the most up-to-date, cutting-edge, interdisciplinary sciences relevant to the psychological dimensions of climate change and climate change education.

Children’s & Youth’s Rights

Every single one of us should have a fair chance of being their best self – we support professionals in their efforts to create safe, nurturing and stimulating spaces for children and youth, and we educate young people about the importance of advocating for their rights and how to meaningfully participate in their own lives.

Entertainment that Educates

Our approach is interactive, approachable and rewarding. We want to change the climate change narrative by creating hope-based and solution-oriented professional development resources and digital content that lightens the tone of the climate conversation.

Evidence Informed

Our mixed-methods value both experiential approaches and analytical strategies. We believe in drawing from all kinds of knowledge to help us shed light on the social and psychological complexities of climate change.

Our GameKibou | The Guiding Light

In collaboration with Carleton University’s Mochi4ThePlanet initiative, we are developing a video game to promote climate resilience, nature connection and climate action.

The Game

Kibou | The Guiding Light is a third-person, PC, action-adventure video game appropriate for all audiences. The game is set on Kibou, an Earth-like planet in the Fireworks Galaxy, a million light-years from the Milky Way. In the game, players will follow the adventures of Ki, a young Kibou’s inhabitant, whose world has been thrown upside down by a massive blackout that left them disconnected from their best friend. Ki’s mission is to reunite with their friend at the other end of the planet. Through this journey, and for the first time in their life, Ki will come to contact with Kibou’s stunning natural environment and will meet other characters who live far from the megacities, known as the Villagers. Through navigating Kibou’s diverse terrain and completing quests and puzzles, Ki will gain a more profound understanding of the environmental catastrophe that is looming on their planet and will learn how to do their part to avoid the impending catastrophe.

The Goals of the Game

Players must reach Ki’s friend at the other end of Kibou. But the transformational goals of the game are to reduce eco-anxiety and increase motivation to act towards the resolutions of the climate crisis.

The game is appropriate for everyone, but it has been designed with adolescents and young adults in mind, given their heightened vulnerability to eco-anxiety.

Mechanics of the game include:

Puzzle solving challenges to accomplish quests

Nonviolent combat to defeat enemies and bosses

Platform elements to move and explore environments and levels

Timed proximity to selected natural elements to restore health and gain mana points

Sign up to our mailing list to get news on the release!

WEBINARS

Active Empathic Listening for professionals

BYBS is proud to introduce its first Webinar Series: Active Empathic Listening for Professionals.

Active empathic listening skills are essential for enabling supportive and respectful conversations and to promote a sense of community. Active empathic listening is also crucial in addressing many of the challenges humanity is currently facing, such as climate change, but also inequality, division, conflict and collective trauma.

Developing active and empathetic listening skills becomes a strategic resource that can have a decisive impact in different contexts, favouring the development of healthy and supportive communication and the maturation of social-emotional skills that are essential in the rapid changes that characterize this historical period.

Specifically designed for educators and professionals working with families, children and youth, Active Empathic Listening for Professionals webinar series presents neuroscientific and psychological evidence of the benefits of active empathic listening on the developing child while strengthening participants’ listening skills.

This series offers 4 webinars:

Webinar #1: How to Bring Your Listening Skills to the Next Level. Thursday. April 27, 2023 1:00pm-2:30pm EST.

Webinar #2: How to Have Life Changing Conversations with Young Children. Thursday, May 25, 2023 1:00pm-2:30pm EST.

Webinar #3: How to Nurture Empathy in Conversation with Young Children. Thursday, June 22, 2023 1:00pm-2:30pm EST.

Webinar #4: How to Empower Young Children with Constructive Criticism. Thursday, July 27, 2023 1:00pm-2:30pm EST.

Registration is available at Families Canada, our partner organization for this webinar series.

A man with his daughter
active empathic listening logo
In partnership with:
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“Every child is a new chance for the whole human race.”

The Hon. Landon Pearson, O.C.

About UsWe make a difference, for young people and for the Planet

For children, the world sometimes feels like a constant boss battle, especially when facing the climate change giant. We help young people tap onto their inner strength and channel their emotions into climate action. In other words, we give them the tools they need to do their part in the fight against climate change and make the world a healthier and more inclusive place for all.

About BYBS

Established in 2019, Be Your Best Self (BYBS) is based in the areas of the psychology of climate change and gaming. Founded by Stefania Maggi, an academic and child rights advocate, the genesis of BYBS came from a desire to empower young people through education of their rights and the emotional impacts of climate change.

BYBS’s digital content is developed in light of the most up-to-date, cutting-edge, interdisciplinary sciences. and through youth participatory processes.

Vision

To defeat the climate change boss.

Mission

To prepare young people across the globe for the ultimate fight against climate change.

Leadership

Our multi-generational & diverse team has a radical vision of the future. We are compassionate, inventive and guided by the highest scientific and ethical standards. With much of our team members being under 30, we walk the talk, every step of the way.

In memory of The Hon. Landon Pearson

Landon Pearson

Children’s Rights Advisory Board – CRAB

We sought out expertise of national and international reach to establish the CRAB, a team of advisors with a common goal: the promotion of children’s rights. CRAB works as a network to provide insights from a rights-based perspective that aids in the development and functions of BYBS as a socially impactful enterprise, as well as the development and applications of its experiences.

Get InvolvedHelp us start the change

There are several ways to get involved in our mission – whether it’s partnering with us, testing our game or simply spreading the word. Contact us today if you are interested in putting children and youth in the driver’s seat of their own future.

Contact Us

We love to hear from anyone with an interest in empowering children and youth around the world – whether you are a parent, a teacher, a child, a youth or an activist.

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