Scotland’s young people honoured for anti-tobacco work at Crofton Awards

17 November 2011

Young people’s projects in Scotland are being recognised for their work in educating their peers about tobacco firm’s tactics and the harms of smoking.

The Crofton Award – joint funded by ASH Scotland and the Royal Environmental Health Institute Scotland (REHIS) – was launched in 2009 to recognise the work of young people in reducing the harm caused by tobacco. There are two categories sharing prize money of £1500 – overall winner and best newcomer.

The importance of young people to Big Tobacco was in evidence earlier this year, when Philip Morris International submitted a Freedom of Information request to get its hand on research data from Stirling University on young people’s opinions on smoking and cigarette packaging

Smoking is responsible for a quarter of all deaths in Scotland and young people are targeted by the tobacco industry as ‘replacement smokers’, to take the place of those who die or quit.

This year’s winner was W-WEST - Why Waste Everything Smoking Tobacco – and is Scotland’s first pro-choice information group. Open to smokers and non-smokers, they aim to help people make informed choices about tobacco. With the prize money they hope to take group members to Uruguay to visit the WHO supported ‘Uruguay Breathes’ interactive exhibit – which compares the two life paths of smokers and non-smokers. W-WEST is working long-term on bringing the exhibition to Scotland and to create Scotland’s own version of the exhibition for the Glasgow Science Centre.

Best Newcomer winners, Dundee Peer Education Project, give young people the skills to become ‘Peer Educators’. They planned quizzes and workshops with Primary 7 pupils in Dundee to pass on info about hazards involved with smoking, correcting the myths and misinformation that circulate amongst a peer group. Young people completing the ‘Peer Educator’ process develop their confidence and knowledge and as a result are able to share their awareness of tobacco issues with people their age.  With the prize money they intend to re-shoot and update a short film to educate about the harms of tobacco.