World No Tobacco Day
Exposing Tactics of Tobacco and Nicotine Companies
By: Megan Danielson
Every year the World Health Organization (WHO) organizes World No Tobacco Day. This year’s campaign works to empower young people around the world to stand up to tobacco industry manipulation by shedding light on the impacts of tobacco on young people — from the risks of exposure to both first and secondhand smoke to the strategic marketing campaigns that target youths.
In support, the Mapbox Community team developed an interactive map that visualizes the Global Youth Tobacco Survey. This map highlights the experience and attitude of young people towards tobacco including if they have ever been offered free tobacco products, favor banning smoking in enclosed public places, and if they have cigarette or tobacco company merchandise.
This years’ theme really hit home for me. In middle school, I participated in a program called Vermont Kids Against Tobacco. While other kids were planning sleepovers or going to summer camp, I was spending my weekends at anti-tobacco retreats learning not only about tobacco companies but also about how public policy can impact public health. At the time (1999 to be exact), tobacco usage in the US among middle school students was 12.8% and 34.8% among high school students. Back then in Vermont, we learned about the health risks of tobacco, and became advocates for policy changes such as increased taxation on tobacco products, regulation of smoking in restaurants and bars, and reducing advertisements specifically targeting children (cotton candy vaping anyone?).
The map developed for this campaign highlights that the tobacco industry continues to target and impact children all over the world. In Iraq, Kenya, and Bulgaria over 10% of youths 13–15 surveyed reported having been offered free tobacco products. But despite the marketing tactics employed by this industry, an overwhelming majority of youths — from Peru to Russia — are rejecting the messaging and support policies such as banning smoking in enclosed public places.
Check out WHO’s World No Tobacco Day site to learn more about the global impact of tobacco and reach out to the Community team if you need support for any public health campaigns.
Maps feature data from Mapbox and OpenStreetMap and their data partners.
