By Adrianna Casaus, 2022 Youth Advocate of the Year Award Winner

I have been involved in tobacco control for 4 years. I got involved in the fight against tobacco in 2018, my freshman year of high school. I remember the first time I saw a vape, and I also remember them becoming exponentially popular. People didn’t know much about them or what they could be doing to their bodies. The same year that I witnessed vapes becoming increasingly popular was the year I attended the training for the program called Evolvement. Through this training, I was personally educated about the many dangers, not only of vapes but of all nicotine and tobacco products. I knew then that I had to do something so that my younger brothers and cousins were protected and educated about all of these many dangers. In addition to this many of my family members had been victims of underage tobacco usage and I knew I had to work to end the cycle.

Youth are often unaware of what tobacco and nicotine are doing to their health, and it is hard to educate all of the youth. With policy changes in school districts, we ask the district to update their handbook to make sure that youth are protected from firsthand and secondhand tobacco and nicotine use at all times, this means during the school day and at after-school events. Changing policies is critical in the fight against tobacco because policies can protect so many people. I feel they can especially protect youth and minorities. 

I have had the pleasure of celebrating many victories when it comes to policy change; I consider public speaking my forte. On the local level, I have presented to my school board twice. After the second meeting, the Cuba Independent School District agreed to adopt a 100% comprehensive policy. Essentially, this means that possession, use, and distribution are prohibited by anyone 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Tobacco control work, or any advocacy, takes an immense amount of creativity. You are constantly talking to different demographics, and although the information is the same, you have to be creative and find the most effective way to educate the audience you are talking to.The pandemic also challenged everyone’s creativity; we had to brainstorm new ways to have events and still generate support even though everyone was staying at home. We had to find untraditional ways to talk to the general public as well as decision-makers.

I made the conscious decision my freshman year that I was not going to fall into the clutches of the e-cigarette epidemic. I also committed to help protect and educate people on the dangers of tobacco. Tobacco advocacy has grown into such a passion of mine, I dedicate so much of my time to helping make change and I am ecstatic that I am making a difference and creating a healthier future for the youth in my state.

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