Breathe California Sacramento Region

Tobacco Control and Education:For the Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down! project, 54 students ages 14-22 (almost double the numbers of students from 17/18) analyzed tobacco use in top-grossing movies in an effort to educate the public and apply pressure on the entertainment industry to reduce the glamorization of tobacco use in movies and advocate for policies that would address the issue. That process includes weekly updates to the website, www.SceneSmoking.org, which features a comprehensive, youth-driven database that is utilized as a research tool for universities, public health officials, tobacco control advocates, and major news outlets. This year also saw the expansion of on-screen smoking research to the realm of video and tv streaming. As more and more youth view entertainment via streaming outlets the project expansion hits the youth where they spend most of their on-screen time. Continued with our work on smoke-free multi-unit housing and smoke free community college campuses. Additionally, our Youth Advisory Board was trained in tobacco control advocacy work by means of speaking opportunities at City Hall and drafting formal letters to local Councilmembers. The BREATHE PSA Contest attracted student participants from 3 local school districts with over 100 students submitting PSA entries. The anti-tobacco PSAs were voted on and winners were announced and awarded at their schools.