The National Latino Tobacco Control Network (NLTCN)

Populations Served:

Hispanic/Latinos in the US, the US/Mexico Border states and Puerto Rico

Description:

The Network is an open information and support system for tobacco control and health disparities advocates and experts who want to become more effective in changing policies and social norms around tobacco control through exchange of information and personal and institutional linkages.

The Network is building a National Directory of Latinos working on tobacco, alcohol, other drugs and health disparities which will be updated each month and allow users to conduct searches of colleagues by state and expertise. We are publishing a Newsletter with important news, upcoming events, training opportunities and recent reports and publications about promising and best practices in tobacco control. Our website has links to repositories of tobacco control materials, curriculums and reports to help advocates do their work. The Network’s listserv provides opportunities for information exchange and networking for all Network members. It also links state health departments, mainstream tobacco control organizations, and communities to network members who can provide technical assistance and culturally and linguistically appropriate training. The Network is open to all of those who are interested in achieving health equity for Latinos and all communities of color and those with limited economic resources.

This Network has a cooperative agreement with the Office of Smoking and Health of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It also is receiving financial support from the American Legacy Foundation. In-kind support is provided by and all of its Management and Steering Committee member organizations as well as the National Cancer Institute at NIH.

Mission:

To build leadership, inform, support and energize a National network of tobacco control experts and activists to work with Latino communities, states and coalitions to address the health burdens created by tobacco consumption by promoting policies and programs to prevent youth initiation, increase quit rates and assure smoke-free environments.

Priority Initiatives:

Recruit 100 Network participants, increase participation of members in decision making, search input to build membership of researchers, and non-tobacco constituents and maintain management structure
Update communications system, website, have calendar of events, increase press releases coverage of tobacco, and participate in raising awareness of Latino issues.
Participate in National Network Consortium Activities and develop partnerships and opportunities for collaboration with Partners and CDC
Support participation in central website development and maintenance
With network assistance, develop capacity building training including technical assistance for different audiences
UNIDOS project will collaborate with NLTCN to learn about existing examples of best practices in tobacco control for Latinos and will share information among network Collaborations, Office of Smoking CDC, States and other national tobacco control partners
UNIDOS project will manage and maintain a current and active list of Training Consultants who have expertise in various areas of tobacco control (increasing capacity to identify and provide TA)
UNIDOS will support the operational and administrative functions of NLTCN to maintain and strengthen network
USMBHA will recruit 4 community-based coalitions with expertise implementing proven or promising structural interventions to address substance abuse among border populations, but whose involvement has historically NOT been with tobacco control into the NLTCN
USMBHA will continue to work with NLTCN to strengthen the collaboration with CDC OSH efforts to target the border and the southwest, in particular any effort to reach out to community coalitions
Use culturally competent materials that promote cessation or the reduction of exposure to secondhand smoke to border populations (like SABEMOS) and promote the use (1,000 SABEMOS kits) to organize community specific responses that include actions that counter-marketing messages or implement promising prevention strategies
USMBHA commits to raise the awareness and importance of tobacco control, with the support of the NLTCN, by sharing report of the USMBHA’s Annual Meeting Alcohol, Tobacco and other drugs track.
USMBHA will maintain the Borderlander and the Electronic Bulletins as a regional system for communicating NLTCN news to border stakeholders to share best practices and information.
Participate in the identification of gaps in methodologies and needed resources and make recommendations for action along the US Mexico Border
USMBHA will support the operational and administrative functions of NLTCN.
Midwest Latino Center (MLC) will evaluate NLTCN utilizing evaluation monitoring tools specific to each of the four Management Team Members
MLC will support the operational and administrative functions of NLTCN
MLC will continue to lead the efforts in promoting Quitline Tobacco Treatment Enrollment Form (Fax Referral Program) and reaching high risk Latinos and other minority population
In collaboration with NLTCN, MLC will develop a bilingual tobacco module, incorporate into the existing Diabetes Empowerment Education Program (DEEP), and provide (at least) one training.

For More Information:

Please contact:
National Latino Tobacco Control Network

Jeannette Noltenius, PhD, MA
National Director
1869 Park Road, NW
Washington, DC 20010
Phone: (202) 328-1313
Fax: (202) 797-9856
Email: jnoltenius@sswdc.com
Website: http://latinotobaccocontrol.org

and/or

Jean Leroux, BGS
National Network Communications Manager
445 N. Pennsylvania, Suite 800
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Phone: (317) 472-1055
Fax: (317) 472-1056
Email: jleroux@indianalatino.com
Website: www.latinotobaccocontrol.org