Tag: Global Action to End Smoking

  • Burbidge Joins Global Action to End Smoking

    Burbidge Joins Global Action to End Smoking

    Global Action to End Smoking appointed Cole Burbidge as a new director of programs. With a distinguished career in advancing public health in underserved communities, Burbidge brings a wealth of experience that will support the organization’s grantmaking work, according to the organization.

    Burbidge is a physician by training and a strong advocate for patient-centered care, understanding firsthand the gaps between idealized healthcare models and the reality faced by patients. His career has been dedicated to improving health outcomes for recreational substance users and high-risk patients.

    At Global Action, Burbidge’s main roles will be developing requests for grant proposals and evaluating prospective research projects. He will also be supporting the communications team as it disseminates relevant information to people who smoke. He will report to Erik Augustson, vice president of programs.

    “I’m excited to continue my work in improving public health through my new role at Global Action,” said Burbidge in a statement. “I am deeply passionate about meeting individuals where they are to make sure that a healthier lifestyle is effective and accessible.”

    Burbidge’s experience spans consulting roles with healthcare organizations, pharmaceutical companies and risk-reduction advocacy groups as well as leadership positions in industry, where he oversaw teams in scientific and regulatory affairs.

    “Dr. Cole Burbidge is a strong addition to our team at Global Action,” said Augustson. “His expertise and passion for patient-centered care will be invaluable as we continue our mission to end smoking. Dr. Burbidge’s focus on innovative, data-driven solutions aligns perfectly with our goals, and we look forward to the impact he will have on our programs.”

  • NGO Debates Smoking Cessation

    NGO Debates Smoking Cessation

    Photo: Global Action to End Smoking

    Healthy Initiatives, a nongovernmental organization, convened an international forum and luncheon in Warsaw, Poland, this week to discuss past successes in smoking cessation and how they may inform future challenges. Participants included policy experts from Georgia and Ukraine.

    “We must learn to meet individuals who smoke where they are on their cessation journeys and to understand why they are unable to quit with the tools at their disposal,” said Cliff Douglas, president and CEO of Global Action to End Smoking. “If we continue to push the same approach from two decades ago, we will fail to serve those who continue to smoke and whose lives are being disrupted by war,” he said, referring to the war in Ukraine.

    “Tobacco control regulations and restrictions in low-[income] and middle-income countries should follow a risk-proportionate approach so that those smokers who are not able to quit smoking combustible cigarettes will have access to objective and scientifically proven information,” said Andre Urushadze, a health policy expert and former minister of health of Georgia. “It is important to ensure the possibility of proper communication as opposed to the informational chaos and many misleading facts.”

    “We should always strive for saving more lives and helping people to succeed in making healthier choices, especially now when the region is torn by the war and humanitarian crisis, the largest since WWII, and people’s priorities have changed,” said Nataliya Toropova, founder of Healthy Initiatives. “It is our task to keep up the health issues high up on the agenda and tackle smoking as a No. 1 risk factor for noncommunicable diseases. With the help of effective smoking cessation programs and education campaigns, we hope to help people who smoke quit, ultimately making the region smoke-free.”

  • Smoke-Free World Group Changes Name

    Smoke-Free World Group Changes Name

    Photo: Dzmitry

    The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World has relaunched as Global Action to End Smoking (GAES).

    The charitable organization says its rebrand reflects a new approach to achieving its mission to end the smoking epidemic. While GAES’ grantmaking will continue to focus on advancing health and science research for robust smoking cessation and reduced-risk solutions, it will also disseminate research findings and information to support people who smoke through its new cessation education program.

    Additionally, GEAS’ agricultural transformation Initiative will continue to assist smallholder farmers in moving away from dependence on tobacco growing to achieving more healthful and sustainable livelihoods in Malawi. (Also see Tobacco Reporter‘s special report on diversification in Malawi.)

    Through September 2023, the organization received charitable gifts from PMI Global Services while operating as an entirely independent entity. In October 2023, the organization ended its funding agreement with PMI. GAES has since adopted a formal policy that it will not seek or accept funding from any industry that manufactures tobacco products or non-medicinal nicotine products.

    In one of its first initiatives under its new name, GEAS announced that it will fund research by the Urban Institute to study tobacco-use disorder and nicotine dependence among low-income individuals in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.

    “We’re thrilled to work with the experts at the Urban Institute, who will carry out the important work of quantifying the magnitude of the problem of the smoking epidemic among low-income individuals in the U.S.,” said GAES President Cliff Douglas in a statement. “Understanding the barriers to cessation is the first step to overcoming them. This work reflects our commitment to end the smoking epidemic worldwide by helping us better understand how best to empower those at the greatest risk of suffering illness and premature death from smoking.”