It’s Not Just Menthol Campaign

Our latest media campaign is focusing on the disproportionate impact of menthol-flavored tobacco products among certain groups.

BUILDING HEALTHIER COMMUNITIES

WHERE WE LIVE, LEARN, WORK & PLAY

SMOKE-FREE HOUSING

Throughout New York State and across the country, apartment owners have begun to embrace
a no-smoking policy as an amenity they can provide for their residents.

TOBACCO-FREE OUTDOORS

As of May 2017, more than 500 New York municipalities have adopted tobacco-free
outdoor area policies (20 in the Capital District) and the list is growing.

TOBACCO MARKETING

Tobacco companies spend more than $9.5 billion on retail marketing and promotion every 
year, more than the amount spent to market junk food, soda, and alcohol combined.

YOUTH ENGAGEMENT

Our youth-adult partnerships have accomplished amazing things in the Capital Region,
including tobacco-free parks and a local law to keep tobacco retailers away from schools.

TOBACCO-FREE WORKSITES

Across the state, community partners have worked with nearly 500 organizations and
businesses to go tobacco-free, including many here in the Capital District.

WHAT’S NEW

Smoke- and vape-free parks save lungs, lives and the planet

Smoke- and vape-free parks save lungs, lives and the planet

The City of Schenectady became the most recent Capital District community to pass a local law that will help save lungs, lives and the planet by prohibiting smoking and vaping of both tobacco and cannabis in all city parks. Inhaling secondhand smoke from tobacco and cannabis, and secondhand aerosols from e-cigarettes isn’t just an annoyance; it’s a health hazard. Tobacco and cannabis smoke and vape aerosols all contain chemicals known to cause cancer in humans. For people with asthma and certain other chronic conditions, even brief exposure can have serious and life-threatening consequences. Cigarette butts, the most littered item in the world, are non-biodegradable and toxic to animals, people and the environment. E-cigarette waste may pose an even greater danger. Disposable vapes and the pods used in reusable devices, contain remnants...

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Take Down Tobacco Day 2023

Take Down Tobacco Day 2023

Today is Take Down Tobacco Day! This annual day of action sponsored by Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, empowers people to stand up and speak out against the tobacco industry.  Our Reality Check program teamed up with the SADD club members at Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk High School to raise awareness about how tobacco companies try to attract youth with brightly-colored packaging, sweet flavors and inexpensive products, often selling them in stores near schools, parks, and playgrounds. We are proud to stand with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and thousands of young people across the country to say we've seen enough flavored tobacco products and tobacco marketing in our communities. To learn more about Take Down Tobacco Day visit: https://www.takedowntobacco.org/

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Flavored tobacco products shouldn’t be sweet, cheap and easy to get

Flavored tobacco products shouldn’t be sweet, cheap and easy to get

It's a consensus.  Every smoker, former smoker and nonsmoker who stopped by our table at the Empire State Plaza concourse agreed that they didn't want young people to ever start smoking.  Nearly everyone also agreed that flavored tobacco products should not be available to addict young people.      One current smoker, pictured above left, expressed wanting to quit and was so passionate about wanting to prevent young people from tobacco addiction that he asked everyone who walked by to sign postcards agreeing that "Tobacco products shouldn't be sweet, cheap and easy to get."  In a few short hours, 36 people from Buffalo, Albany, Brooklyn and places in between, signed those postcards.  Many others stopped to talk with us about wanting to quit or wanting their loved ones to quit.  One nurse whose...

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WANT TO QUIT?

You don’t have to do it alone.