Talk to honor smoking behavior pioneer

The first Michael Russell Oration is due to be given on June 27, during the opening session of the First Global Forum on Nicotine, which is to be held in Poland.

The oration has been established by Knowledge-Action-Change as an annual event, to be delivered to honor the work and memory of professor Michael Russell, one of the pioneers in the study of smoking behavior, clinical interventions and public policy action, who died in 2009.

Knowledge-Action-Change describes itself as an organization committed to the development and promotion of evidence-based policies and interventions in the field of substance use and related areas of public health and public policy.

Each year the oration will be given by a leading researcher, practitioner or commentator in the field of nicotine use.

The inaugural oration will be delivered by professor Peter Hajek, the director of the Tobacco Dependence Research Unit at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary College, University of London.

The forum is due to be held at the Marriott Hotel in Warsaw on June 27–28.

It will be staged by KAC and is set to examine the current state of the debate about the use of nicotine across the globe; critically examine the science relating to the safety and use of nicotine; allow politicians, scientists, manufacturers, distributors and consumers to exchange views; and facilitate the development of links to enable ongoing dialogue between different sectors.

KAC stages public health and addictions conferences and runs the Nicotine Science and Policy website www.nicotinepolicy.net.

The forum’s website is at http://gfn.net.co/; the program is at: http://gfn.net.co/programme; and registration is available at: http://register.kachange.eu/gfn2014/.