Thinking 'bout THR Newsletter
September 25-October 2, 2024
There is a time and place for everything.
RIP, Andy. Thank you for the many lessons you taught us about caring, laughing, loving, and living life to the fullest. “Nothing about us without us” was the model you lived by. May we all strive to help others with as much compassion as you did.
Sometimes, agendas should be left at home, especially when people are mourning the loss of someone. A world void of compassion is a world not worth living in.
I’m putting a lot of effort into understanding where people are coming from, to “walk a mile in their shoes,” as the saying goes. I want to be less judgemental and do a better job of finding common ground with others.
But the hate, disdain, and disrespect doled out by some people make it hard—so very, very hard—to remain on the high road. Driving off the high road will not change other people; it will only diminish my value as a good person.
A long time ago, someone told me that anger is a secondary emotion and something else gives birth to anger. Often, it is fear. They also told me that hate can be taught or, like anger, can come from something else, usually pain. I try to remember this when I get frustrated with someone for being hateful.
Lack of compassion happens when we let hate of a thing destroy our ability to feel empathy for another human being. Hate can blind you. Don’t let hate eradicate your ability to care about others.
Until next time….
PS: The 2024 and 2025 Events and Opportunities sections have been updated.
It’s Hard to Quit Smoking. But Rutgers Researchers Want to Make It Easier Through Improved Communication. “Previous research has indicated that between two-thirds and three-quarters of people believe e-cigarettes are as unsafe as regular cigarettes – or even more dangerous. Identifying ways to correct this misinformation is central to the study.
Nicotine and Tobacco Research: Past, Present, and Future. “I also intend to champion clear, consistent, and neutral terminology, utilizing ontologies where possible. I will lead the journal to support the publication of research that prioritizes the voices of people who use nicotine and tobacco products and focuses research efforts on the populations most in need of support to stop smoking.”
Walmart workers sue over tobacco fees levied for health plan trust. “This means participants who become tobacco-free partway through the plan year or who complete a smoking cessation program can avoid future surcharges but are not retroactively reimbursed for any surcharges already paid in that plan year,” the lawsuit reads. “This practice violates ERISA’s requirements that participants receive the ‘full reward’ after satisfying the alternative standard.”
Voices of Harm Reduction Pt 3: Sairah Salim-Sartoni. “…We then go into how nicotine addiction works, that they smoke for the nicotine but are harmed by burning tobacco. And that they do not need to give up the nicotine that they smoke for we just need to separate the harm from the nicotine and then they can still use it in other forms like NRT (which still has a vital role to play) and vaping. Many are so relieved to hear that and for me to be able to reassure them and give them enough facts around vaping that they feel they can give it a go means the absolute world to me.”
The youth ‘vaping epidemic’ is over. “…but smoking still causes hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths…”
Vaping set to overtake smoking in the United Kingdom as research and policy endorses tobacco harm reduction. “Government support for vaping showcases the power of tobacco harm reduction to bring down smoking rates.”
“Merci la Vape”—French Advocates Counter Relentless Anti-Vape Moves. “It is regrettable to witness huge misinformation on vaping: a powerful tool for harm reduction which helps people quit smoking.”
The events listed below focus on nicotine. Some do not support reduced-risk products. Some have covered nicotine in the past but may not cover that topic every year.
October - Stoptober, Healthy Lung Month, Health Literacy Month, ADHD Awareness Month,
Oct 3-4, 2024, Burlington, VT, US (In-person & Virtual) - Vermont Center on Behavior and Health 12th Annual Conference. 2024 Theme: "Tobacco Use: Intersections with Other Addictions, Chronic Disease, and Health Disparities."
Oct 4, 2024, (Virtual) 2:00-3:00 PM ET - TOPS Tobacco Online Policy Seminars. You can follow them on X (Twitter).
Oct 4, 2024, (Virtual) 1:00 PM AEST - Tobacco Endgame CRE Series: Responses to health warning labels on cigarette packages between 2002 and 2022: Findings from the International Tobacco Control Four Country Survey. You can follow them on X (Twitter).
Oct 7, 2024 (Virtual) 12:00 PM (UK) - Stoptober 2024: Busting Vape Myths: A Closer Look at the Evidence.
Oct 7, 2024, (Virtual) 2-4:30PM CEST - SRNT-E Non-combustible nicotine – beyond electronic cigarettes.
Oct 8, 2024, 9 AM - 12:15 PM PT (Virtual) - the UCSF Annual Tobacco and Other Industry Documents Workshop. More info here.
Oct 13-17, 2024, Edinburgh, Scotland - CORESTA Congress 2024
Oct 14-17, 2024 (In-person) PA, US - Clearing the Air® Institute. American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation
Oct 15, 2024, (Virtual) 12-1 PM EST - Addressing the Harmful Effects of Tobacco Related Stigma.
Oct 15, 2024, US (Virtual) - FDLI Introduction to Tobacco Law and Regulation. You can follow them on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Facebook.
Oct 16, 2024, UK 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM (Virtual) - Introduction to ontologies and the Behaviour Change Intervention Ontology.
Oct 17, 2024, Prague, Czech Republic (In-person) - Global Anti-Illicit Trade Summit, Europe.
Oct 19, 2024, (In-person & Virtual) Malaysia, - Harm Reduction Conference 2024.
*NEW* Oct 21, 2024, Silver Spring, MD, US, 9am - 4:30pm EDT (In-person and virtual - free) - Advancing Smoking Cessation: FDA and NIH Priorities (FDA and NIH priorities). Deadline to request making an oral presentation is Oct 1. Deadline to submit written comments to the docket is Nov 21, 2024.
Oct 23-25, 2024, Lisbon, Portugal - LISBON ADDICTIONS European Conference on Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies. (Some of the sessions are about tobacco/nicotine.)
Oct 23-25, 2024, Broadbeach, Australia - Oceania Tobacco Control Conference 2024. See list of Conflict of Interest Principles.
Oct 23, 2024, Washington DC, US (In-person and Virtual) - FDLI Tobacco and Nicotine Products Regulatory Science Symposium. You can follow them on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Facebook.
Oct 24-25,2024, Washington DC, US (In-person and Virtual) - FDLI Tobacco and Nicotine Products Regulation and Policy Conference. You can follow them on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Facebook.
Oct 27-30, 2024, Minneapolis, MN, US - 2024 APHA Annual Meeting and Expo (Public Health). Register here.
Oct 28, 2024, Charleston, SC, US (In-Person & Virtual) 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM ET - Susan Rosenblatt lecture: Brian King
Oct 28-29, 2024, Charleston, SC, US (Virtual and In-Person) 2024 NICOTINE AND TOBACCO SCIENCE CONFERENCE
November - COPD Awareness Month
November - Lung Cancer Awareness Month
Nov 6-8, 2024, Harrisburg, PA, 2024 James E. Anderson Pennsylvania Conference on Juvenile Justice. One of the workshops, Restorative Solutions: Rethinking Youth Tobacco, Nicotine, and Vaping Dependency
Nov 12, 2024, San Francisco, CA, US (In-person) 9 AM - 5 PM PT Free - Introduction to Causal Research Methods. Note: Registration Deadline September 25, 2024.
Nov 12, 2024, San Francisco, CA, US (In-person) 9 AM - 5 PM PT Free - Introduction to Difference-in-Differences. Note: Registration Deadline September 25, 2024.
Nov 13-14, 2024, Accra, Ghana - Africa Conference on Tobacco Control.
Nov 14-15, 2024, UK - SSA Annual Conference. Professor Ann McNeill will give the Society Lecture at the SSA’s Annual Conference. The title of the talk is, ‘Tobacco harm reduction – controversies and potential resolutions’.
Nov 14-16, 2024, Chicago, IL, US—AMERSA Conference—Note: We won't know until the agenda is announced if nicotine will be part of this year's conference.
Nov 14-16, 2024, Ontario, Canada - CSAM-SMCA 2024 Scientific Conference.
Nov 18-20, 2024, Olomouc, Czech Republic, (In-person) - Czech Annual Cancer Research Meeting. Note: Keynote talks: Prof. David Khayat on Cancer Risk Factors: The Role of Tobacco Harm Reduction.
Nov 20, 2024, National Harbor, MD, US 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM ET (In-Person) FREE - Introduction to Causal Research Methods. Note: Registration Deadline September 25, 2024.
Nov 21-23, 2024, National Harbor, MD, US Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management - Fall Research Conference. (APPAM)
Nov 21, 2024, Great American Smokeout
December 5, 2024, UK (Virtual and In-person), E-Cigarette Summit UK
Dec 30, 2024, World Safer Nicotine Day #WSND #WSND24
Scroll Down for 2025 and 2026 Events
Check out the public Google calendar of THR-related events created and maintained by Clive Bates. Also, check out the event calendar from Ecig Intelligence. Their listings include consumer/trade shows and expos that I don't include in this newsletter. This is a good resource for information on conferences about addiction/behavior.
Research Participants Wanted
UCL seeks people who vape to participate in a 30-minute lab-based study.
Positions Available
Rutgers: Data Analyst.
Health and Environmental Economics Lab (HEEL) at URMC: Health Economics and Data Science Predoc.
Wanted: Conference/Seminar/Webinar Submissions…
*NEW* Oct 21, 2024, Silver Spring, MD, US, 9am - 4:30pm EDT (In-person and virtual - free) - Advancing Smoking Cessation: FDA and NIH Priorities Deadline to request making an oral presentation is Oct 1. The deadline to submit written comments to the docket is Nov 21, 2024.
TOPS Tobacco Online Policy Seminar call for papers/nominations. The submission deadline is October 7, 2024.
Call for Papers
Cancer prevention. Submission Deadline: 11 October 2024
Mental Health, Stigma and Addictive Behaviors. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 November 2024
Empirical modeling. Submission deadline: 28 November 2024
Generating stronger evidence to inform policy and practice: natural experiments on built environments, health behaviours and chronic diseases. Submission deadline: November 30, 2024
A Means to an ENDS: The Uncertainty of ENDS Use and Cardiovascular Disease From Human Research to Basic Science Mechanisms. Submission deadline: 31 December 2024
Cancer Causes and Control. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024
Factors Associated with Successful Smoking Cessation. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024
Scroll down for 2025 opportunities
Call for Papers / Abstracts
E-cigarettes and Vaping Products: Health Effects and Toxicological Impacts. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 21 January 2025
*NEW* Tenth International Congress on Peer Review and Scientific Publication. Call for abstracts opens Dec 1, 2024. Deadline for submissions is Janurary 31, 2025.
Thinking Outside the Box to Reduce Health Inequities in Perinatal Tobacco and Nicotine Exposure: A Nicotine & Tobacco Research Themed Issue Nicotine & Tobacco Research intends to publish a themed issue on Prenatal Tobacco and Nicotine Exposure. The guest editors for this issue will be Dr. Natacha De Genna, Dr. Laura Stroud, and Prof. Yael Bar-Zeev. Submission deadline: February 1, 2025.
LGBTQ+ Health. Submission deadline: 04 March 2025
14th Workshop on the Economics of Risky Behavior Call for Submissions. Submission deadline: 10 March 2025 (Event)
Consumer behaviour. Submission deadline: 25 March 2025
Wearable devices. Submission deadline: 27 March 2025
The Tobacco Endgame in Low- And Middle-Income Countries and Indigenous Communities: Evidence Syntheses and Systematic Reviews. Submission deadline: 25 May 2025
STRONGER Scholars: A Research Education Program to Reduce Tobacco-Related Cancer Disparities and Improve Health Equity. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025
Jan 15-19, 2025 Seattle, WA, US - Society for Social Work and Research.
Jan 27-28, 2025, Las Vegas, NV, US - E-Vapor and Tobacco Law Symposium.
Feb 13-15, 2025, Boston, MA, US - 2025 AAAS ANNUAL MEETING. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE
Mar 5, 2025 York, UK (In-person & Virtual SCAH - Smoking Cessation and Health Conference.
Mar 12-15, 2025 New Orleans, LA, US - SRNT 31st Annual Meeting
Mar 27-29, 2025 - Phoenix, AZ, US - 31st Nicotine Dependence Center Conference 2025: The Evolving Tobacco Landscape and Implications for Policy and Practice.
April 15-17, 2025, Arlington, VA, US - American Tobacco & Nicotine Forum (ATNF), formerly the TMA Annual Meeting & Conference (I’m not aware of a link available to the event yet)
Apr 27-30, 2025 - Bogotá, Colombia - 28th edition of the Harm Reduction Conference (HR25)
June 11-12, 2025, Madrid, Spain - 14th Workshop on the Economics of Risky Behavior.
June 2025, Bangor, Maine, US - 2025 Tobacco Treatment and Prevention Conference.
Aug 26-28, 2025 Chicago, IL, US - The National Conference on Tobacco or Health (NCTOH) (Link is to the announcement, not event info)
*NEW* Sep 3-5, 2025 Chicago, IL, US - e 10th International Congress on Peer Review and Scientific Publication.
Sep 10-12, 2025 Romania - SRNT-E Conference.
Nov 13-15,2025 Hyatt Seattle, WA, US - Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management - Fall Research Conference. (APPAM)
Nov 17, 2025 (all week) Geneva - FCTC COP11
Nov 24, 2025 (all week) Geneva - FCTC MOP4
Mar 4-6, 2026 Baltimore, MD, US - SRNT 32nd Annual Meeting.
Sep 6-9 2026, Cape Town, South Africa - 18th World Conference on Public Health.
Nov 5-7, 2026, Boston, MA, US - Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management - Fall Research Conference. (APPAM)
Notes:
I create these newsletters as a personal project. They are not affiliated with any current or past employers or groups I do volunteer work with. I believe that everyone deserves a seat at the table. If you’re interested in nicotine with a focus on THR, this newsletter is for you.