The European Respiratory Society (ERS) and the European Network for Smoking Prevention (ENSP) celebrated World No Tobacco Day on 31 May by hosting a high-level meeting on tobacco control under the World Health Organization’s (WHO) theme of ‘Tobacco – a threat to development’.
The event and adjoining campaign ‘Europe United – The Race Against Tobacco’ was an unprecedented call for unity and for all countries to get involved in tackling the tobacco epidemic.
Taking place in Brussels, the meeting gathered together responsible partners in tobacco control from all European countries with the aim of facilitating discussion about how European countries can join forces to reach the 2030 sustainable development goals in the context of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
The event outlined each specific goal through a series of presentations. ERS President Professor Guy Joos and ENSP President Francesco Rodriguez Lozano presented in relation to ‘Encouraging broader public and partner participation in national, regional and global efforts to develop and implement development strategies, and plan and achieve goals that prioritise action on tobacco control.’