Report to the Conference of the Parties on the Implementation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control

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Part V: Program and Plans

• 4. Education, communication, training and public awareness
  
  1. Broad access to effective and comprehensive educational and public awareness programmes on the health risks
     
  2. Adults and/or the General Public
     (b.1) Web-based information
     (b.2) Mass media campaigns
     (b.3) Partnerships with health professionals
     (b.4) Working with employer groups
  3. Children and Youth
     (c.1) Mass Media
     (c.2) Resources for youth
     (c.3) Youth engagement activities to educate on health risks
     (c.4) Tobacco-Free Schools
     (c.5) Fact sheets, posters and resources
  4. Training or awareness programmes on tobacco control
     (d.1) General Training
     (d.2) Cessation Training
     (d.3) Media Training
     (d.4) Retailer Training
     (d.5) Training for Other Concerned Persons
  5. Public awareness about the health risks of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke, and about the benefits of the cessation of tobacco use and tobacco-free lifestyles
     (e.1) Health Risks of Tobacco Consumption
     (e.2) Health Risks of Exposure to Tobacco Smoke
     (e.3) Benefits of Cessation & Tobacco-Free Lifestyles
     
  6. Public access to a wide range of information on the tobacco industry
  7. Awareness and participation of public and private agencies and nongovernmental organizations not affiliated with the tobacco industry in developing and implementing intersectoral programmes and strategies for tobacco control

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4. Education, communication, training and public awareness

(a) Broad access to effective and comprehensive educational and public awareness programmes on the health risks

One of the primary goals of the  Tobacco Act is "to enhance public awareness of the health hazards of using tobacco products".

As part of the FTCS, a broad-based, integrated and sustained approach to education has been undertaken through mass media and public education and informing Canadians about the health risks of tobacco consumption and of exposure to second-hand smoke happens at many levels across the country. At the national level information is made available to Canadians through a wide-variety of channels. National programs are further supported by provincial and territorial, regional and municipal activities.

Statistics demonstrate that generally Canadians are very knowledgeable about the risks associated with smoking. According to a recent survey, more than 95% of Canadian adults believe that the harm to health caused by smoking cigarettes is either "very serious" (77 per cent) or "somewhat serious" (18 per cent)¹. Youth (under the age of 20) have similar ratings to the adult population when asked the same question.

Canadians also appear to be relatively confident in the information provided by the federal government and its partners with regard to the health risks of smoking. According to one study, "Canadians primary source for health risk information is health care practitioners (85%), followed by NGOs (64%), Health Canada (60%), regional or local health authorities (55%), university scientists/journals (55%), television news (54%), stories or articles in the newspaper (51%), friends and relatives (51%)".²

In addition to the information provided by the federal government, a number of provincial/territorial and non-governmental organizations provide in-depth information on tobacco risks and tobacco control activities in Canada.

Some examples include:

•  Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse (AADAC) ( www.aadac.ca)
•  British Columbia Centre of Excellence for Women's Health (www.bccewh.bc.ca)
•  Canadian Cancer Society (www.cancer.ca)
•  Canadian Council on Tobacco Control (www.cctc.ca)
•  Canadian Lung Association (www.lung.ca)
•  Canadian Tobacco Control Research Initiative (www.ctcri.ca)
•  Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (www.camh.net)
•  Conseil québécois sur le tabac et la santé (www.cqts.qc.ca) - available in French only
•  Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada (www.heartandstroke.ca)
•  New Brunswick Anti-tobacco Coalition (www.nbatc.ca)
•  Non-Smokers' Rights Association (www.nsra-adnf.ca)
•  Ontario Tobacco Research Unit (www.otru.org)
•  Physicians for a Smoke-free Canada (www.smoke-free.ca)
•  Prevention Source BC (www.preventionsource.org)
•  Program Training and Consultation Centre (Ontario) (www.ptcc-cfc.on.ca)
•  Quebec coalition on tobacco control (www.cqct.qc.ca) - available in French only

(b) Adults and/or the General Public

The Government of Canada has implemented a broad campaign to ensure that Canadians can access information about the health effects of smoking, tobacco products and exposure to second-hand smoke.

All Government of Canada publications include contact information for Canadians who wish to obtain more information on a specific topic. Interested persons can call a toll-free Government of Canada number (1-800-O-CANADA) to order resources on tobacco control issues (i.e. second-hand smoke, cessation, legislation, etc.) they can contact Health Canada's Tobacco Control Programme (TCP) directly through a toll-free number or through the TCP website (www.gosmokefree.ca), or they can order free materials and resources online in both English and French.

(b.1) Web-based information

In 2004, 59% of Canadian households had an internet subscription and 73% of adult Canadians had internet access.³ Given the level of connectivity, the web provides easy access to information for the majority of Canadians. As such, the Tobacco Control Programme hosts an extensive website (www.gosmokefree.ca) to provide access to tobacco prevention, education, protection and cessation resources, programs and best practices. Resources on the website are also divided by audience type (i.e. general public, health professionals, teachers, quitters, decision-makers) to help ensure that people are accessing the information that is most pertinent to them.

(b.2) Mass media campaigns

The federal government has undertaken a number of mass media campaigns to help support its programs and policies. These media campaigns traditionally include one or more of the following tactics: television advertising, print ads in national publications, billboards, bus shelter ads, targeted websites, pamphlets, posters and other fulfillment pieces.

In addition to national mass media campaigns, funding is provided to provincial/territorial governments and non-governmental organizations to produce regional media campaigns targeted to specific groups. These campaigns promote smoke-free lifestyles, provide education around second-hand smoke and encourage smokers to quit. Examples are provided below under Part V, section 4.(e).

Some recent national-level campaigns are listed below. Copies of fulfillment pieces are available in Appendix 6-D.

• Quitting: Bob and Martin
  This campaign, targeted at adult smokers aged 35+, uses a series of eight television ads featuring a Canadian character, "Bob" ("Martin" in French ads), to portray the common challenges of quitting. The campaign uses positive and encouraging messages to bring smokers from contemplation, preparation, action through to the maintenance stage. Each ad ends with a clear call-to-action directing people on how to get help to quit smoking.
• Second-hand Smoke - Workplace
  This ad featured a testimonial by a middle-aged woman named Heather Crowe. Although she had never smoked a day in her life she was dying of smoking related lung cancer due to working as a waitress in smoky restaurants her whole life. The tag line for this ad states "Some tobacco companies say second-hand smoke bothers people. Health Canada says it kills. Are you a target?"
• Second-hand Smoke - Workplace Aboriginals⁴ Component
  To coincide with the second-hand smoke workplace campaign (referenced above) there was an Aboriginal second-hand smoke campaign developed. The primary objective was to inform Aboriginal people of the dangers of exposure to second-hand smoke in the workplace. The target audience was Aboriginals, both on and off-reserve.
• Second-hand Smoke - Home and Car
  Health Canada's second-hand smoke Home and Car campaign is aimed at reducing the number of children exposed to second-hand smoke in the home and vehicle by focusing on the source and eventual solution to this issue, parents who smoke or allow smoking around their children.

(b.3) Partnerships with health professionals

Health professionals are an integral part of the Federal Tobacco Control Strategy and a source of trusted information for Canadians. As such, the federal government has partnered with numerous health organizations to encourage health professionals to be more proactive in helping patients understand the dangers of tobacco use and in providing cessation counselling. Some groups we have partnered with include doctors, pharmacists, dentists, nurses, occupational therapists and respiratory therapists (see under Part V, section 4. (d)) for information on training for health professionals).

One example of widespread partnership is the fax referral program. This program allows a variety of health professionals to refer their patients to local toll-free quitlines for cessation services simply by faxing the patient information (with informed patient consent) directly to quitline specialists.

(b.4) Working with employer groups

Working with employer groups is another way of reaching out to the Canadian public. Resources made available to employers/employees include:

• Resources on the health risks associated with smoking and second-hand smoke
• Guides to smoking cessation and referrals to smoking cessation programs
• Guides to creating smoke-free environments in the workplace

In addition, Health Canada has partnered with some employer groups to distribute cessation resources to employees. For example, 25,000 copies of On the Road to Quitting: Guide to Becoming a Non-Smoker were distributed through the Canadian Autoworkers Association.

(c) Children and Youth

Across the country there are numerous initiatives to address the issue of smoking with children and youth. As school curriculum is set by each province and territory, most of these activities take place regionally. National work is carried out in collaboration with the provinces and territories as appropriate. Examples include:

• Interactive and hands-on programming to help youth learning
• Youth-driven projects
• Linguistically and culturally sensitive resources

(c.1) Mass Media

• Second-hand Smoke - Youth
  The 2002 youth campaign theme was generated in consultation with youth and introduced the s.s.d. (second-hand smoke diseases) branding. The rationale behind s.s.d. was to draw a parallel to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), an idea that is familiar to youth and therefore easier to communicate and remember. The objective of this campaign was to increase youth awareness of second-hand smoke and its health effects as well as to encourage youth to create personal and public smoke-free spaces. For further details, please visit Health Canada website:http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/tobac-tabac/res/media/camp/index_e.html#ssd
• Second-hand Smoke - Youth Aboriginal⁵ Component
  To coincide with the mainstream second-hand smoke youth campaign a second-hand smoke Aboriginal campaign was developed to target Aboriginal youth aged 15-19 years of age both on and off-reserve. The primary objective of this campaign was to inform Aboriginal youth of the dangers of being exposed to second-hand smoke. The tag line "That's the good you can do" was used and a new message of "Second-hand smoke: You'll never know what you'll get" was introduced. For further details, please visit Health Canada website: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fnih-spni/substan/tobac-tabac/media/index_e.html
  
  
• Spend Money on Living
  This campaign aims to reduce the prevalence of smoking among teenagers. Entitled "Spend Money on Living" the campaign is targeted at youth aged 12 to 18 in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island and addresses denormalization, prevention and cessation. The goal of the media campaign is to encourage more young smokers to participate in Health Canada's Quit 4 Life program (see under Part V, section 5. (b) for a full description of the program).

(c.2) Resources for youth

• Science, Tobacco & You
  An education package with activities designed to help students in grades 4-6 learn about tobacco and its negative effects on the human body. This program contains an easy-to-use, interactive CD-ROM, and a teachers' guide, flash cards and exercise sheets. For further details, please visit Health Canada website: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/tobac-tabac/res/audience/teacher-enseignant/index_e.html
• Smoke-free Spaces Toolkit
  The Smoke-free Spaces Activist Toolkit supports Canadian youth in taking action against second-hand smoke and in creating smoke-free spaces in their schools and communities. The program includes a CD-ROM that teaches about second-hand smoke and activism, as well as a facilitator's guide (Appendix 6-G-5).
• Quit4Life
  This 4-step program is designed to help Canadians aged 14 to 19 quit smoking. The Quit 4 Life program is designed around 4 central steps: Get Psyched, Get Smart, Get Support and Get On With It. It was developed with the principles of social cognitive theory, using cognition behavioural techniques to promote individual behaviour change. The guide is available both in hard copy (App 6-B-endix3) and on-line (www.quit4life.com).
•  Not on Tobacco
  Since 2003, Manitoba has been offering a teen smoking cessation program called Not On Tobacco (NOT) to Manitoba schools throughout the province. This program provides teens with the information, motivation and support to quit smoking. For further details, please visit: http://www.mb.lung.ca/not.html

(c.3) Youth engagement activities to educate on health risks

• Youth Action Committee (YAC)
  The Youth Action Committee (YAC) was formed in 1999 to give advice to Health Canada about tobacco control programs targeted to youth and to provide ways to reach a young audience. YAC is comprised of members aged 14 to 19 from across Canada, reflecting the diversity of the Canadian society. YAC members are also involved in health and tobacco groups in their own provinces and territories as well as in their own communities and schools. YAC members were instrumental in organizing Canada's first National Forum on Youth and Young Adults Tobacco Control Issues. For further details, please visit Health Canada website: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/tobac-tabac/youth-jeunes/work-trav/index_e.html
• The Building Leadership for Action in Schools Today (BLAST) program
  BLAST is a youth leadership conference for students in grades 7 - 9 that takes place in the fall of the school year. At the BLAST conference youth strive to identify the social influences prompting their peers to smoke and to learn the skills necessary to resist those influences. Each school is given the task of developing an action plan to educate their peers on the dangers of tobacco and influence the reduction of tobacco use. Students are responsible for implementing that plan in their school or community.
•  stupid.ca
  This program, undertaken by the government of Ontario, includes a mass media campaign, supported by a website (www.stupid.ca) that educates about chemicals in tobacco smoke, and harms of tobacco use and supports a tobacco-free social norm among youth. The campaign also encourages teenagers to become involved in the anti-tobacco movement through linkages with a network of local youth action alliances and high school activities, and other initiatives.
• La Gang allumée
  La Gang allumée is a program, undertaken by the government of Quebec, available in all regions of the province. The program provides support to youth to help them prevent tobacco use, educate their peers about the dangers of smoking and to help smokers to quit. There are currently more than 343 youth groups working on anti-tobacco programming within their schools and local community centres across the province.
•  Teaming up for Tobacco Free Kids
  This is a tobacco youth prevention program for kids in grades 4-6. The program is comprised of 5 main elements, including a teachers' resource kit, classroom role model visits, poster contest, t-shirt and website (www.tobaccostinks.com).
• Graduating Tobacco Free
  Saskatchewan's Minister of Healthy Living Services challenged all 2006 graduating grade 12 classes in Saskatchewan to achieve the goal of graduating as a tobacco-free class. Successful graduating classes received a framed certificate for their participation; students received a gym bag and a personally signed certificate from the Minister.

(c.4) Tobacco-Free Schools

More and more provinces and territories are requiring that schools at all levels (elementary, middle and secondary) be tobacco-free, including on outdoor school grounds. One example of a comprehensive strategy that ensures that tobacco awareness and education services are clearly linked to both health and safe environment programs, and key cessation services and supports can be found in New Brunswick.

• New Brunswick Tobacco-Free Schools
  New Brunswick initiated a grant-to-schools program to help reduce tobacco use by students, and to help schools become 100% tobacco free. Over the three-year grant period, 97% of high schools have accessed funding. Because research indicates that student involvement is important in influencing health choices and behaviour, a key criterion for eligibility is a comprehensive school health approach--active student and student group participation.

(c.5) Factsheets, posters and resources

Printed factsheets and other resources that outline the health risks related to smoking are available on the Health Canada website (www.gosmokefree.ca) and are distributed through a variety of channels, including doctors' offices and direct mail-outs to schools and families with young children.

A variety of resources targeted at youth which display the health risks of smoking and the dangers of second-hand smoke are available through the website and have been widely distributed through workshops, conferences and other meetings. (An example of the poster "It Will Never Happen to Me" is included in Appendix 6-G-3).

In addition there is extensive information for youth available on the website and as printed resources that have been developed to help empower youth to resist the temptation to smoke and to help them exercise their rights to smoke-free environments (see under part IV, section 2. (e) for more information on available programs).

A number of resources targeted at parents have also been developed. These include resources for parents to educate themselves on the dangers of secondhand smoke such as the "Make your home and car smoke-free: a guide to protecting your children from second-hand smoke" and "Help your child stay smoke-free: a guide to protecting your child against tobacco use". These resources are available through Health Canada (Appendix 6-D).

The Province of Manitoba has also developed a resource for parents called 'Cutting through the Smoke: A Parent's Guide to Talking to your Kids about Tobacco', available at this web address: http://www.gov.mb.ca/health/cuttingthrough.html

(d) Appropriate training or awareness programmes on tobacco control addressed to persons such as health, community and social workers, media professionals, educators, decision-makers, administrators and other concerned persons

(d.1) General Training

• National and Regional Conferences
  Tobacco control conferences are held at regular intervals in Canada. These conferences, which include both national and regional conferences, provide a rich environment for participants to receive training in various areas of tobacco control. Bursaries and scholarships are available to help youth, young adults and people from remote areas attend these conferences.
• Ontario Tobacco Research Unit (OTRU) Online Tobacco Control Course
  This online course was developed to provide training to those who work in the field of tobacco control. The course is available to anyone in Canada (though you must apply to the organization for a password) and covers topics such as protection, prevention and cessation in both English and French.
• Laval University - Contrôle du tabagisme : problèmes, enjeux et perspectives
  This post-graduate course (available in French only) is offered online to anyone wishing to learn about tobacco control issues from a public health perspective.
• Program Training and Consultation Centre (PTCC)
  The PTCC provides training, consultation, information, networking opportunities and referral services related to tobacco control to Ontario health intermediaries. Services are provided to health units, community coalitions, community health centres, voluntary organizations, health care providers, occupational health workers.
• Strategic Training Program in Tobacco Use in Special Populations (CAMH and CIHR)
  The Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health have funded a Strategic Training Program in Tobacco Use in Special Populations that provides outstanding training opportunities for graduate students, PhD postdoctoral fellows, MD research fellows and both new and established investigators.
• Canadian Tobacco Control Research Initiative (CTCRI)
  CTCRI provides grants to graduate and post-doctoral students (up to $10, 000) in order to create new opportunities for students in Canada to undertake independent research projects related to tobacco control and nicotine addiction interventions.

(d.2) Cessation Training

• Training Public Health Staff in Smoking Cessation for Pregnant Women and Parents (PTCC)
  This training program is designed to build the skills of Ontario public health unit staff in offering smoking cessation support to pregnant women and parents with children in the home.
• Mobilisation des ordres professionnels (Québec)
  The province of Quebec has undertaken a large-scale training program to engage and train health professionals in the area of smoking cessation. Through this program, general practitioners, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, respiratory technicians and dental hygienists have all received training on how to encourage and support their clients quit smoking attempts.
• Telephone Counselling Protocols for Pregnant and Post-Partum Women
  Specific protocols and training were developed to help quitline counsellors provide specialized cessation advice to pregnant and post-partum women. These protocols are based on the available best practices.
• Smoking Cessation Education Program for Pharmacists
  Different levels of training were developed so that Canadian community pharmacists can offer varying intensities of tobacco cessation interventions for their clients. Pharmacists are able to obtain accreditation from the Canadian Council for Continuing Education in Pharmacy once they have completed the course.
• Training Facilitators for Smoking Cessation (Yukon)
  This project involved the building of a network of trained facilitators to provide group smoking cessation programming in the Yukon. The program, based on Dr. David Aboussafy's stage-matched smoking cessation model, uses motivational interviewing techniques. The program was successful in training a number of facilitators who provide cessation counseling in remote areas of the Yukon.
• Techniques for Continuing Education Programs and an Intervention Toolkit for Dental Hygienists
  A web-based continuing education program on tobacco cessation services for dental hygienists was developed in order to increase the number of dental hygienists who are providing tobacco cessation services in their clinical practices.
• Training Enhancement in Applied Counselling for Health (TEACH) Program
  The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Ontario has developed a core curriculum for moderate intensity cessation counselling for health care professionals from a variety of disciplines. Specialty trainings for special populations, e.g., pregnant women, are also offered.

(d.3) Media Training

• Global Media Training on Cessation
  Health Canada has provided funding for this international initiative to create a toolkit to help cessation stakeholders with the design, implementation and evaluation of cessation media activities.

(d.4) Retailer Training

• Retailer Toolkit for Tobacco Sales
  Saskatchewan Health, Health Canada and the Saskatchewan Tobacco Retailers Advisory Committee partnered to create a "Retailer Toolkit for Tobacco Sales", a policy and procedure resource for owners, managers and clerks of tobacco retail outlets. The toolkit is designed to help prevent tobacco sales to minors and help to comply with legislation respecting the display of tobacco.
• First Nations Tool Kit for Tobacco Sales
  First Nations and Inuit Health Branch of Health Canada have also developed a "First Nations Tool Kit for Tobacco Sales" which they use to educate tobacco retailers on First Nation land.
•  Quebec Retailer Toolkit
  This retailer toolkit, developed by the Province of Québec, outlines the legal obligations with regard to point of sale for all retailers. The kit is available for download at: http://www.msss.gouv.qc.ca/sujets/santepub/tabac/index.php?retailers_tobacco_products

(d.5) Training for Other Concerned Persons

• Policy Guideline on Second-hand Smoke
  The BC Lung Association developed a policy guideline to deal with issues related to second-hand smoke for tenants and landlords, and developed and delivered educational presentations for landlord associations, housing co-ops, non-profit housing and other stakeholders.
• Federation of Canadian Municipalities
  A bulletin and information on creating smoke-free spaces was sent to the mayor of every Canadian city through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. This information helped to increase awareness around second-hand smoke and generate momentum around creating smoke-free bylaws in Canadian cities.

(e) Public awareness about the health risks of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke, and about the benefits of the cessation of tobacco use and tobacco-free lifestyles

(e.1) Health Risks of Tobacco Consumption

Information distributed through awareness campaigns often addresses the health risks of tobacco consumption. Given that organized tobacco control activities have been taking place in Canada for more than 20 years, most Canadians are well aware of the risks of tobacco consumption.

According to a recent study "when asked, top-of-mind, what specific human health effects or diseases can be caused by smoking cigarettes, Canadian adults are most likely to mention lung cancer (51%), followed by cancer in general (40%), heart attack/disease/angina (35%), emphysema (26%), lung disease (22%)...".⁶

In addition to work at the national level (covered under Part IV, section 2. (a)), a number of regional and/or provincial media campaigns have been undertaken to target specific sub-population groups and to address cultural issues.

Provinces and territories are also using new techniques to engage people in tobacco control activities. Two examples include:

• Tobacco Reduction Counsellors
  In the province of Alberta, 30 trained professionals provide on-the-ground awareness, program delivery and some cessation support for youth and the general public. These counselors are the point of contact for all tobacco reduction measures within individual communities.
• ActNow BC
  This program is the health promotion platform that is helping British Columbians live healthier lives by being more physically active, eating better foods, living tobacco free and making healthy choices. The tobacco goal is to reduce prevalence by a further 10 % (see Appendix 6-B-1 for a copy of the resource).

(e.2) Health Risks of Exposure to Tobacco Smoke

Efforts have been undertaken at the federal, provincial and municipal levels to inform Canadians of the dangers of exposure to second-hand smoke. National and regional mass media campaigns, warning labels on cigarettes, information to support smoke-free legislation and the distribution of a broad range of resources have led to an increase in awareness among both smokers and non-smokers of the risks associated with exposure to second-hand smoke.

In general, the Canadian public is increasingly aware of the risks associated with exposure to second-hand smoke. For example, majorities of Canadian adults strongly agree that second-hand smoke can cause asthma attacks in children (64%), lung cancer in non-smokers (59%), and bronchitis (57%) and chest infections in children (52%).⁷

In addition to the national mass media campaigns outlined under Part IV, section 2. (a), a number of regional campaigns warning of the dangers of second-hand smoke have also taken place. Some examples include (see Appendix 6-F for copies):

• Smoke-Free Homes and Cars
  A guide on making your home and car smoke-free was designed as a fulfillment piece to the national mass media campaign (discussed under under Part IV, section 2. (a)) and on-line: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/alt_formats/hecs-sesc/pdf/pubs/tobac-tabac/second-guide/second-guide_e.pdf
• STARSS: Start Thinking About Reducing Second-hand Smoke
  A mass media campaign geared to low-income, single mothers who smoke and whose children are 0 to 6. It encourages mothers to smoke away from their children and resulted in more intentions to quit.
• Rouler sans fumée This French-language resource is a social marketing campaign targeting both drivers and passengers that raises awareness of the risks associated with being exposed to second-hand smoke in confined spaces (such as cars) even for brief periods of time.
• Commando oxygène This project increases knowledge about the dangers of second-hand smoke among young people between 12 and 18 years of age through a short play put on in schools, youth centres and recreation centres.

(e.3) Benefits of Cessation & Tobacco-Free Lifestyles

The national mass media cessation campaign (discussed under Part IV, section 2. (a) was complemented by the distribution of a quit smoking resource entitled On the Road to Quitting: Guide to becoming a non-smoker. In addition to the national campaign, many regional and provincial campaigns also take place. Quit smoking guides and programs are also available across the country (see under Part IV, section 3. (b) for addition details).

• I love you but ... [I'm] moving on smoke-free
  This program, aimed at young adults, offers concrete help to young adult smokers to become smoke-free in the form of a QuitPack (containing tools and resources - from brochures to gum and mints - to inform smokers about the quitting process). Young adult smokers enroll in the program and are followed for six months. The program is complemented by a mass media component (billboards, posters, postcards, radio, big screen ads, etc.).
• You Can Get Better
  This campaign targeted 20-30 year-old blue collar BC smokers and ran January 2005 and February 2006. The objectives were to encourage this group to move towards cessation by quitting, reducing the amount of tobacco used and or by preparing to quit in the future.

(f) Public access to a wide range of information on the tobacco industry

A number of community groups have been provided with funding to undertake mass media projects that have been very explicit of the tactics used by the industry to attract youth as life-long smokers. One example is:

• Exposé
  Exposé is an innovative, bilingual smoke-free initiative that aims to reduce the youth smoking rate and cigarette consumption among youth by encouraging them to analyze the tobacco problem in an intense and meaningful way. The project encourages youth to explore tobacco addiction, tobacco industry promotion of their products, the pain and suffering associated with tobacco use, the effects of second-hand smoke, and the global tobacco epidemic (see Appendix 6-G-1 for a copy of the resource).

(g) Awareness and participation of public and private agencies and nongovernmental organizations not affiliated with the tobacco industry in developing and implementing intersectoral programmes and strategies for tobacco control

As noted under Part IV, section 2. (a), non-governmental organizations were instrumental in developing the National Strategy in Canada. These organizations play a key role in providing tobacco control programming in Canada and many of these organizations receive partial funding from Health Canada to carry out their tobacco control activities (see partial list under Part IV, section 2. (a)).

In addition, through the Federal Tobacco Control Strategy, Health Canada works with a very broad range of partners, including health organizations, educators, researchers, other levels of government, employers, Aboriginal organizations, women's organizations, youth organizations, professional associations, advocacy organizations and international organizations to undertake activities at the international, national, regional and local levels.