DUBLIN, IRELAND
23 - 25 JUNE 2025
Last month, the Content Committee of the World Conference on Tobacco Control convened in New York City, USA, to select the breakthrough research that will be presented at the conference. With over 1,400 abstracts submitted for consideration, we are overjoyed by the volume and quality of the submissions received.
The World Conference on Tobacco Control will be held in Dublin, Ireland, from 23 – 25 June 2025 following a seven-year hiatus. Hosted by the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union), the conference will spotlight groundbreaking policies and help to forge new alliances against the evolving tobacco epidemic. The preliminary programme was published on 26 February.
Attracting thousands of academics, health professionals, non-government organisations and public officials from over 100 countries, convening to drive real change in tobacco cessation and leading to a healthier world for all. The Content Committee plays a crucial role in ensuring that the most insightful research and case studies are spotlighted on a global stage, catalysing this transformative action.
Professor Lekan Ayo Yusuf, Content Committee Co-Chair and Chair of the School of Health Systems and Public Health at the University of Pretoria, said: “Looking back at the last conference, the tobacco control landscape has certainly changed. Covid, the penetration of technology, AI, and persistent industry interference all bring opportunities and challenges for tobacco control research, policy, and practice. We have had a great time reflecting on all the submissions, and look forward to an engaging conference.”
The Content Committee, consisting of world-leading tobacco control experts, have reviewed submissions relating to five key content tracks:
Interested in learning more? Registration for the World Conference on Tobacco Control is now open.
Discussing the submissions received, Magda Korczak-Mleczko, Principal Producer for the World Conference on Tobacco Control, The Union said: “We have had two days of intense programme selection, and we’ve been simply amazed at the quality of abstracts, symposia, and other submissions. The programme in June 2025 will be fantastic; we have so many types of sessions and presentations and we cannot wait to showcase it.”
Nuan Ping Cheah, Laboratory Director, Health Sciences Authority, said: “It’s been really impressive on the number of submissions that we’ve had and the high quality of the information, research and practice in the papers has been incredible. I’m also impressed by the number of submissions coming from the youth.”
Mark Hurley, Vice President, International Communications at Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said: “Now more than ever it’s very important for the global tobacco control community to come together. We need to work closely to collaborate, to learn, and to figure out how we can finally move forward in ending the global tobacco use epidemic. The World Conference on Tobacco Control is going to offer all of these opportunities.”
Dr Joanna Cohen, Content Committee Co-Chair and Chair of the Department of Health, Behavior & Society at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said: “I’m so excited to convene again at our upcoming conference on tobacco control. We’ve put a terrific programme together and it will be a wonderful opportunity to see each other and exchange ideas as one community.”
Dr. Fenton Howell is medical graduate of University College Dublin, Ireland, and completed higher specialist training in Public Health Medicine in 1991. He is the former National Tobacco Control Adviser to the Department of Health, is a Clinical Associate Professor in Public Health in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at Trinity College Dublin, and is a board member of the National Cancer Registry Ireland. Dr. Fenton Howell is a Fellow of both the Faculty of Public Health Medicine of Ireland and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. He is a past Dean of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine of Ireland, and past President of the Royal Academy of Medicine in Ireland, the All Ireland Social Medicine Group and the Irish Medical Organization. He has previously served on the boards of ASH Ireland, the Tobacco Free Research Institute, the European Network on Smoking Prevention, the Institute of Public Health in Ireland and the Medical Bureau of Road Safety, and he chaired the Prevention Working Group for the Ireland–Northern Ireland–United States National Cancer Institute Cancer Consortium.
Dr. Gan Quan, PhD, is Senior Vice President at Vital Strategies, where he leads the Tobacco Control Division, comprising a global team working with governments and civil society partners around the world to reduce tobacco use, the leading preventive cause of deaths worldwide. The Division has supported work in more than 50 low- and middle-income countries with a focus on evidence-based tobacco control policies and implementation, capacity building, and countering interference from the tobacco industry.
Dr. Gan Quan has more than 15 years of international experience in health system building, policy implementation, government partnership, and policy research. Prior to joining Vital Strategies, Dr. Gan Quan spent 14 years with the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union), first as Technical Advisor, then Director of China Office, and most recently as Director of Tobacco Control Department. Before joining The Union, Dr. Gan Quan was a research fellow at the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at University of California, San Francisco.
