Tyze is a new online service that makes it easy to reach out to friends, family, neighbours and caregivers.
It helps you to build a network of care – make plans and share stories – and make a real-world difference in the quality of life of someone you love.
Learn more about Tyze from this introductory video.
Tyze is much more than a way to make appointments and track tasks. It’s a place to celebrate the contributions and achievements of the person at the centre of the network – and a way they can stay connected to friends and loved ones. And for the network’s members, it’s a chance to feel connected and effective in a whole new way. Learn more about personal support networks.
Tyze is built from the ground up on the proven methodology of PLAN, the Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network. For nearly two decades, PLAN has built, sustained and strengthened personal support networks. Learn more about the PLAN Institute.
Tyze was created for the PLAN Institute by Social Signal, an online community strategy company that specializes in developing site concepts, blueprints and engagement plans for user-driven web sites. As the architects of the Tyze community, Social Signal worked to translate PLAN's proven methodology for creating and supporting personal support networks into a web application that reflects best practices in community design. Learn more about Social Signal and the rest of the development team.
PLAN Institute is a source of inspiration, perspective, information, and demonstrable solutions related to caring citizenship.
Our understanding of caring citizenship comes from our roots in the disability community. Incorporated in 1999 as a civil sector charitable organization, our goal is to foster caring communities that welcome the participation and contribution of all citizens.
We provide training, consultation, research and publications for individuals, families, organizations, support workers and professionals who want to learn more about the values, concepts and actions of caring citizens. Based in Vancouver with international ties our work focuses on connecting people, ideas and actions through dialogue, network facilitation and leadership development.
It is our mission to reduce the isolation and loneliness of people with disabilities and ensure that the gifts and contributions of all members of a community are encouraged and welcomed.
Through policy reform, leadership development, social entrepreneurship, social network facilitation and dialogue, our work is focused on connecting people, ideas and action. As international leaders in the field of social network facilitation, grounded in 15 years of experience, PLAN Institute has supported over 40 national and international organizations in the development of social networks addressing the issue of isolation and loneliness for people who are marginalized. PLAN Institute has conducted research with over 500 leaders across Canada regarding best practices, written policy papers and created numerous resources related to social network development.
Social Signal , an on line community strategy company, worked to translate PLAN's proven methodology for creating and supporting personal support networks into a web application that reflects best practices in community design. Social Signal convened a world-class design and development team to implement its blueprint for Tyze, and helped to bring that vision to life by working with PLAN Institute to create the content, facilitation and training plans for the first generation of Tyze networks.
Communicopia is a web strategy company that helps organizations working for sustainability and social change align behind their purpose and build meaningful relationships with customers and supporters through the connective power of the web. As a strategic advisor on the Tyze project, Communicopia CEO Jason Mogus has helped to develop the Tyze brand and to support PLAN's transition into online networking. Communicopia has also worked with PLAN to create many of its other web sites, including the PLAN institute and the Ties that Bind. With over a decade of experience in online storytelling, Communicopia's work has ranged from creating the Tides Canada Foundation site to creating the UN Foundations' Webby Award-winning Nothing But Nets.
Affinity Bridge is a web development company that specializes in configuration, programming and theming for the Drupal web platform. Affinity Bridge has built a network of Drupal sites for the Post Carbon Institute, including Post Carbon and Relocalize; other projects include creating a sustainable forestry database for the University of British Columbia, and creating a geographic search system for sustainable businesses on Happyfrog.
The Tyze logo and visual design were created by Veerle Pieters of Duoh. Based in Belgium, Veerle is one of the world's top experts in CSS-based web design; past projects include designing the Webby Award-winning Green My Apple site for Greenpeace, and working with Social Signal and floatleft to create Compumentor's NetSquared.
Floatleft is an organization offering high-quality, affordable design and web development solutions for nonprofits. Working from Duoh's design, Floatleft principal Courtney Miller created the Tyze theme for Drupal. Floatleft's past work includes creating the themes for Change Everything and NetSquared, and creating sites like Stories for Change and the Community Technology Foundation.
Loving, caring relationships are the key to a good life. A person’s emotional and spiritual well-being is intertwined with the relationships he or she creates. Most of us cannot imagine a life without someone to share our closest thoughts, dreams, and fears with. Yet the truth is that persons who are marginalized are frequently lonely, and the most significant disabling condition they face is their isolation.
It is imperative that this issue be addressed because the consequences of inaction are grave. Without family and friends, the person’s health suffers, choices are diminished, and vulnerability increases.
Most of us have informal social support networks – persons we count on and confide in; people who help us out. They are our relatives, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances. Unfortunately, many marginalized persons don’t experience the support provided by relationships.
By using Tyze, and through the facilitation of a social support network, it is possible to address these challenges. The term “social support network” as used in this context refers to a group of committed men and women who are in a relationship with a person who is isolated and vulnerable by reason of disability, age, living arrangement, limited opportunities, or society’s perception. Each member of the network voluntarily forms a relationship with the person at the centre of the network and with every other member of the network. Each member offers support, advocacy, monitoring, and companionship.
Tyze, along with social support networks, has become a powerful tool for creating a safe and secure future for marginalized persons. They spell the difference between living on the edge of community and being actively included in it. They welcome and connect people to the heart of community. They provide families with peace of mind.
In 2002 and 2005, PLAN conducted social audits to determine, among other things, whether social support networks were making a difference in the lives of people at the centre of the networks, their families, and network members. These studies showed that networks have a positive impact on the lives of all involved. (To learn more, visit www.socialaudit.ca.)
Certain principles and concepts form the foundation upon which the social support network facilitation program is based. The following principles are the core values that guide the development of each and every network: