Fargo Cass Public Health hosts its first “Break Free Youth Action Summit”

The summit gave students tools and resources to find their voice and advocate for change.

FARGO, N.D. – Fargo Cass Public Health is hosting its first “Break Free Youth Action Summit.”

The goal is to present techniques on how teens can be  successful tobacco prevention advocates.

Following the e–cigarette outbreak, Fargo Cass Public Health in collaboration with Tobacco Free North Dakota decided to host their first summit to get the youth to take action and make a positive change in their communities.

“I think it’s a high prevalence in our youth because they have been marketed to, they’ve been directly targeted, to purchase these products, to use these products,” says Tobacco Prevention Coordinator Melissa Markegard.

The focus of the summit is to speak about: flavored e–cigarettes, raising the price of tobacco, raising the purchase age to 21.

Health experts also want teens to learn how to advocate for themselves, how to advocate with their city commissioners, city council members and school boards.

There have been four confirmed cases of vaping–related illnesses along with three probable cases in North Dakota.

According to the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data, vaping among North Dakota high school students increased between 2017 and 2019, from 20.6% to 33.1%.

In the months following the summit, students will work with their peers to create activities for Red Ribbon Week, Great American Smoke out, Great American Spit Out and Kick Butts Day.