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The Ramsey Tobacco Coalition (RTC) has been working to reduce the harm caused by tobacco in Ramsey County since 1997. RTC has been a leader in reducing youth access to tobacco, enforcing tobacco-free school ground policies, adopting tobacco-free park policies, adopting tobacco-free policies for youth clubs and youth-serving agencies, and adopting smoke-free workplace laws and point-of-sale ordinances in Ramsey County and St. Paul.

The focus of the project is to reduce the tobacco marketing and advertising practices by:

  • Identifying the level and types of tobacco influences in our area
  • Comparing the influences in inner city neighborhoods with those in suburban communities, and low income neighborhoods with middle and upper income neighborhoods within the city
  • Identifying any ways in which these industry influences may violate the legal restrictions created by local, state, and national laws, and legal settlements.

RTC is assessing and advocating for change in the following areas:

  • Point-of-sale advertising (in-store signs, promotions, outdoor signs, branded store fixtures and paraphernalia, etc.)
  • Promotional and sales practices designed to target youth (self-service displays, power walls, loosies, candy flavored tobacco, placement at children’s eye level, etc.)

We believe the tobacco industry uses all of these tactics to normalize tobacco use and influence youth by shaping the environment in which they live, and that these influences are specifically tailored to reach low socioeconomic status, Latino/Hispanic, African American, Asian, and Caucasian youth.

The project uses our research findings to advocate for changes in industry behavior, enforcement of legal restrictions and, where possible and appropriate, policy change to reduce tobacco industry influences at the point of sale.

Tobacco-Free Campuses

While the overall tobacco use rate continues to decrease and public spaces are becoming increasingly tobacco free, tobacco use and exposure remain a problem on college campuses. Tobacco-free college campus policies are a proven solution to these problems Tobacco-free campus policies provide a healthier living, working and learning environment for students, faculty, staff and visitors. College leaders are realizing the important role they can play in reducing tobacco use and exposure among young adults. As a result, colleges in Minnesota and across the country are implementing tobacco-free policies for their campuses. Through our Tobacco-Free Campus program, ANSR is working to promote the adoption of tobacco-free policies at colleges and universities located in Ramsey County. For more information contact:

Emily Anderson, Tobacco-Free Campus Program Director emily@ansrmn.org (651) 646-3005

The Association for Nonsmokers-Minnesota is working with a coalition of advocates to reduce the tobacco industry’s influence in Minneapolis. Through coalition efforts, we’ve found that electronic cigarettes and cheap, flavored cigars continue to be a big problem. Since workplaces became smoke-free in 2007, clean indoor air has become the standard Minnesotans expect. In a recent poll, 79 percent of Minnesotans supported prohibiting e-cigarette use in indoor public spaces. The coalition is comprised of NorthPoint’s Breathe Free North youth program and other youth-serving organizations, as well as public health agencies and nonprofits.

North Suburban Tobacco Compliance Project

(NSTCP) offers law enforcement, decision makers, vendors and communities a proven and comprehensive method to ensure youth don’t have access to tobacco.

NSTCP recruits, trains and maintains all youth buyers. All youth are trained, follow a specific protocol, are professional and continually receive feedback after each time they assist. Each student receives a gift certificate to reimburse them for their time or verification of service hours completed.

NSTCP holds two scheduled tobacco vendor trainings per year open. These trainings are open to all vendors in participating cities and cost nothing to the vendor. Program Director- Policy & Compliance Katie Engman is also available to provide onsite vendor trainings when requested and has done this multiple times.

Katie H. Engman, Program Director Phone: (651) 646-3005 x314 Email: katie@ansrmn.org

Smoke-Free Lodging

The Smoke-Free Lodging program promotes 100% smoke-free policies for lodging establishments. In order to increase the number of lodging establishments with smoke-free policies, Smoke-Free Lodging educates tourism industry professionals, lodging managers, owners and key staff about the benefits of 100% smoke-free buildings. Smoke-Free Lodging also assists lodging establishment owners and managers with creating and promoting smoke-free policies for their properties.