NEWS RELEASE - for immediate release/distribution

Contact: Nat Schwark (she/they), Club Secretary / U of A Natural Resources Student

727-612-2599 or natalieschwark@email.arizona.edu

Emma Sawyer, President-Elect / U of A Public Health Student

ejsawyer@email.arizona.edu

Terry Nordbrock MPH, Pima County Health Department

CDC REACH Program Specialist / Advisor
520-392-9258 or terry.nordbrock@pima.gov

Working Title: Smoke Free Wildcats Celebrates World No Tobacco Day and Seeks New
Members
In collaboration with the Pima County Health Department, AZ Center for Tobacco Cessation,
and AZ smoke Free Living, the UA Smoke Free Wildcats Club (UA-SFW) was created with the
intent to encourage 100% smokefree environments for students and all members of Pima
County. We do so by advocating for policies that support and advance tobacco prevention, by
expanding access to tobacco treatment programs, by working with local health departments and
multi-housing units, as well as by providing real-world opportunities for students to work on
policy change, advocacy, public speaking, teamwork, networking and other professional
development activities.

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, UA-SFW has been resilient. Despite lack of exposure
and student involvement, UA-SFW has met throughout the year to adapt our recruitment plan
and advertising activities. One of our more recent recruitment plans is to highlight World No
Tobacco Day as a chance for students to get involved. We were hoping Daily Wildcat could help
us spread the word about UA-SFW and the upcoming holiday, World No Tobacco Day.

World No Tobacco Day is celebrated on May 31st, this year and every year! Created in 1987 by
the World Health Organization, World No Tobacco Day draws global attention to the tobacco
epidemic. In preparation for the celebration and to increase student awareness of our club, we
are encouraging students to sign a petition created by the World Health Organization (WHO)
and #CommitToQuit. UA-SFW created this hashtag and a poster to advertise the WHO’s petition
among the UA community.

We are targeting non-smokers as well as active smokers, since one of our club’s main missions
is to educate the public on the real and present dangers of secondhand smoke. We collaborate
with local apartment buildings and other multi-housing units to establish Smoke-Free Living
environments. Many people living in apartments and similar housing are unaware of the
dangers posed by secondhand smoke from other residents. The reality is that of the 8 million
global deaths caused by tobacco every year, 1.2 million are non-smokers that have been
exposed to secondhand smoke.

Nearly 25% of the US population resides in multi-unit housing, including college students across
the country. Therefore, it is UA-SFW’s priority to educate our fellow Wildcats, Tucson residents,
and other members of the Pima County community of these unfortunate realities.

As such, we have attached the poster below, as well as the links to our social media accounts.
On our Facebook page, we are attempting to achieve 75 shares of the poster. We have also
attached a list of 100 reasons to quit from the WHO’s World No Tobacco Day website for your
convenience. We hope that the Daily Wildcat will support our mission and help us spread the
word.

We thank you in advance for considering UA-SFW’s proposal. If you have any questions or
would like to set up a meeting to learn more, please feel free to email Nat Schwark, our
secretary, at natalieschwark@email.arizona.edu. UA-SFW looks forward to collaborating with
the savvy journalists at the Daily Wildcat!
All the Best,

Emma Sawyer (she/her) and Nat Schwark (she/they)

UA Smoke Free Wildcats President-Elect and Secretary

Social Media Links & Other Resources:

Smoke Free Wildcats Facebook Page

Smoke Free Wildcats Website

Instagram: @smokefreewildcats

#CommitToQuit Pledge

World No Tobacco Day Poster PDF

100 Reasons to Quit