Five teens have been selected as winners for the 2023 Take a Breath: Teen Voices on Tobacco, Cannabis and Vaping poster contest. Youth in grades eight to 12 living in the Interior Health region were invited to participate in the contest. Teen judges on the IH Teen Advisory Council evaluated and scored each poster based on a specific set of criteria.
The intent of the poster contest was to spark meaningful conversations about teen tobacco, cannabis and vapour product use, and their impacts on teens’ health, environment and their communities. Teens who identify as Indigenous were also invited to reflect and share on the differences between ceremonial and commercial tobacco use.
“It’s exciting to see this level of interest in participating in this contest. We do appreciate the attention that encourages us to work even harder to spread the word about the impacts of smoking and vaping on our health,” says Dr. Fatemeh Sabet, medical health officer at Interior Health. “By collaborating with youth, we continue to learn how to engage younger generations in a more meaningful way in order to minimize the risks of hazards, like vaping, in our communities.”
