About Us
The Youth Digital Compass, led by Professor Victoria Talwar at McGill University in partnership with BRP’s Ride Out Intimidation program, is a program that develops research-based tools to help youth, parents, and teachers navigate online life safely, kindly, and confidently.
Drawing on over a decade of research into how young people experience and respond to cyberbullying, we work closely with youth to design engaging resources like videos and infographics. We continue to develop new materials for youth, parents, and teachers. If you have suggestions or feedback, we would love to hear from you – don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at onlinesafety@mcgill.ca.
Our Story
The Youth Digital Compass is a program created by a team led by Professor Victoria Talwar at McGill University.
It is delivered in partnership with BRP’s Ride Out Intimidation program. Our goal is to provide practical, evidence-based resources to help youth, parents, and educators respond to cyberbullying and navigate digital life safely and responsibly.
Over a decade, Professor Talwar and her research team have been studying the personal and contextual factors that influence how children and adolescents respond to cyberbullying as bystanders. Their research shows that support from parents and teachers can make a big difference in how youth react, feel and protect themselves online.
Launched in September 2025, Youth Digital Compass offers easy-to-use multimedia tools specifically designed for and with young people. Together with our Youth Council (ages 8 to 14), we have developed videos, infographics and activities that focus on topics such as:
- Helping youth understand what cyberbullying is and how it happens.
- Teaching online safety and how to protect themselves from digital risks.
- Encouraging safe and effective ways to be an upstander.
- Promoting kindness, respect, and positive online communities.
We also support the adults in young people’s lives. Many parents and teachers want to help but are not sure what to say or do when youth face online problems. To address this, the Youth Digital Compass project created materials that cover
- What cyberbullying looks like and how to talk about it
- Tips for keeping youth safe and resilient online
- Guidance on digital etiquette
- What parents and teachers should know about popular apps
With the ongoing support of BRP’s Ride Out Intimidation program, the Youth Digital Compass Team is continuing to develop new materials for youth, parents, and teachers.
Professor Victoria Talwar
Professor Victoria Talwar is a Canada Research Chair Tier I and a Professor at McGill University. She is also the director of the Daniel and Monica Gold Centre for Early Childhood Development. She is an associate member of the Institute for Human Development and Wellbeing (IHDW) and the Department of Psychology at McGill University.
Her research focuses on children’s and youths’ social-emotional and moral development, including youths’ online engagement. She investigates how young people navigate digital interactions, including their perceptions of online behaviours and the harm they perceive from witnessing online aggression. Dr. Talwar’s work informs interventions that promote safe, ethical, and responsible online engagement, including the development of digital resources for youth, parents, and teachers. Dr. Talwar has given numerous workshops to parents, teachers, social workers, and legal professionals.
- Fellow of the American Psychological Association (Division 7)
- Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science
- Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Our Team
The Youth Digital Compass Team consists of highly motivated young researchers at various stages of their studies, including undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels. Team members come from diverse backgrounds such as education, psychology, human development, and school and applied child psychology.
This diversity provides many perspectives on developing multimedia resources for youth, parents, and educators using best practices.
The Youth Digital Compass Team, on February 13, 2025, is making a difference on Yellow Day as a part of BRP’s Ride Out Intimidation program.