MBE awarded to Camilla Byk in the Queen’s Birthday 2022 Honours List

“This award is a real honour to receive as it recognises the need for young people to have a voice and a platform that is truly theirs.” - Camilla Byk

Camilla Byk, Co-Founder of Podium.me, has been awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for her services to Young People and Broadcast Journalism.

The recommendation has been made by the Prime Minister on the advice of the Independent Main Honours Committee following an independent assessment process.

Camilla Byk co-founded Podium.me 10 years ago as a platform for young people under the age of 25 to create podcasts and audio dramas about stories they really care about.

Experiencing the press’s reporting on young people as often biased during the Clapham Junction riots in 2012, Camilla’s mission has been to hear young people represented and respected in every sphere of the media.

With over 2000 people globally participating in Podium.me’s workshops and programmes over the last decade, Camilla’s ethos has been to treat every participant as an individual with a unique story to tell.

Podium’s ‘no selection, no rejection’ approach highlights Camilla’s belief that all ideas are good ideas and helps participants to feel empowered to create the best content they can. Camilla is always looking for opportunities to encourage young people to network with others and progress in their careers. She now provides work experience and internships to young people around the world and has helped to establish hundreds of careers in the audio industry due to her relationships with schools, youth clubs and universities as well as the BBC and commissioners for Radio 1.

Podcasts and audio dramas created by young people from the Podium.me network are available on Podium.me and SoundCloud.

About Camilla Byk MBE

Camilla was made a Fellow of the Radio Academy in 2021 and has a background in languages and media. Podium.me is also an affiliate patron of the Radio Academy. She lives in Wandsworth with her husband Robert and three teenage daughters.

About Podium.me

Podium.me is a media platform for young people under the age of 25. It has won an ARIA award both for Innovation and Audio Drama and continues to be a force for challenging the media to represent young people accurately and fairly.