GFN News

Institutions like WHO, regulators, and NGOs are hostile to harm reduction and have shifted their firepower from smoking to safer nicotine alternatives, says Clive Bates, international tobacco control policy expert. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Bates describes public health’s “war on nicotine” as a misguided, ideological crusade that betrays its original mission of reducing smoking-relat...

Flavours have been a focal point of the debate about safer nicotine products, with calls to ban or restrict flavours often receiving significant media coverage. This workshop highlighted the growing evidence supporting the use of flavours in smoking cessation and explored changing attitudes to these products and the challenges regulators face in creating risk-proportionate legislation.

Sweden’s success with snus and now nicotine pouches proves tobacco harm reduction is a model for helping millions quit smoking. But there’s a secret behind this success. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Poland, we speak with Anna Franzén and Tomas Hammargren of Emplicure about the big questions surrounding nicotine policy and the realities of recreational use.

GFN Voices 2025 #7 | Why communication is the heart of science? by GFN.TV

Examining available evidence on the net public health impact of incorporating tobacco harm reduction principles in policymaking, participants discussed the challenges and opportunities to leverage tobacco harm reduction approaches to achieve LMIC public health goals. The aim was to identify the top three priorities as a takeaway for key stakeholders in the audience.

In India, hundreds of millions of tobacco users are kept in the dark about safer nicotine products, while the government bans popular alternatives like vaping and stays silent on even basic NRTs. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Poland, Jagannath Sarangapani exposes how prohibition and the absence of relative risk messaging have shaped the country’s tobacco control strategy.

Achieving consensus in debates around tobacco harm reduction is rare. This workshop will explore how we can effectively build consensus in academic discussions around safer nicotine products, and correct misconceptions about tobacco harm reduction, using the Delphi Approach, a structured communications process. After short introductory remarks, participants will engage in group discussions using D...

Flavors can play a key role in helping smokers switch. Many start with tobacco flavor but move to others over time — distancing themselves from the reminder of smoking. As adults, we enjoy sweets, drinks, and treats — why should quitting be any different?

The #GFN25 conference brought together some of the leading THR advocates from across the world, and in this episode of GFN Voices several of these prominent figures share their key gains and findings from this year's conference!

In this episode of GFN Voices we're joined by Dorrie Heemskerk to bring you some expert insight into efforts to counter misinformation in public policy.

In Sweden, the combination of snus and the emergence and uptake of pouches were likely key to its unparalleled achievement of smoke-free status, in November 2024. Despite these positive signs, regulators are circling, particularly in Europe, with bans either in force or planned in several member states. The panel will explore the science and evidence for pouches and discuss what steps need to be i...

In social media posts, official speeches, press releases and memorandums, WHO has repeatedly made claims which appear to contradict the evidence available, and which conflict with statements made by reputable public health institutions. Simply condemning the WHO’s science on tobacco harm reduction is not going to shift the dial. The panel will investigate the WHO’s science on THR, and address the...

#GFN25 Commentary Team #1 | How to Talk About Tobacco Harm Reduction? by GFN.TV

In this GFN Voices episode, advocates from across Latin America and the Spanish-speaking world joined us at #GFN25 to highlight the regional complexities that need to be overcome, and the ways the THR community is coming together to do just that.

Despite its aim to reduce global consumption of cigarettes, the impact of the WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) on tobacco use has been heavily contested, particularly in relation to low-income countries. The panel will assess the effectiveness of the convention as it reaches its 20th anniversary, and highlight areas that need drastic change, if it is to have any future relevanc...

There are more than one billion smokers in the world and the vast majority will die prematurely because of their nicotine addiction. What most people don't know is that there is a cure: vaping. Vaping is a non-toxic way to deliver the nicotine that people need without the disease-producing byproducts of burning tobacco. Compared with cigarettes, any health risks associated with vaping are very sma...

GFN 2025 Keynote #3 - delivered by Maria Papaioannoy-Duic, hosted by Jagannath Sarangapani, response from Konstantinos Farsalinos. A consumer advocates’ approach, cutting through the noise to deliver factually accurate information about safer nicotine products is a constant struggle. Maria will present a ‘real-world how-to guide’, drawn from the lived experience of consumer advocates, identifying...

In the first episode of #GFN25 Voices, we've invited this year's in-person conference attendees to share their thoughts on the best ways to fix misperceptions about THR!

GFN 2025 Keynote #1 - delivered by Jacob Grier, hosted by Marina Murphy, response from Harry Shapiro - titled "Tobacco harm reduction and the media - evidence, narrative and consequences". Jacob will highlight how, despite positive gains made by advocates for drug harm reduction, tobacco harm reductionists face an uphill battle to be heard, let alone get the evidence across. From outdated media na...

Watch Will Godfrey’s post-#GFN25 reaction, where he underscores the critical importance of effective communication in advancing the conversation around safer nicotine products. His reflections highlight how clear, evidence-based messaging can help shift public perception, inform policy, and support harm reduction efforts on a global scale.

Michael Russell Oration 2025 - "Bridging the Divide: Taking Global Action to End Smoking" | #GFN24 by GFN.TV

Tobacco harm reduction experts from across the globe recently gathered for this year's#GFN25 conference in Warsaw, so in this special series we've put together some of THR's leading experts to highlight the communication barriers that we need to overcome to share the real science behind safer nicotine products. Joining us on the conference floor today are Clive Bates, Fiona Patten and Mark Tyndall...

GFN 2025 Keynote #1 - delivered by Mark Tyndall, hosted by Paddy Costall, response from Carolyn Beaumont - titled "What's so scary about tobacco harm reduction?". Mark will explore the lessons he has learned from the harm reduction movement, not least the way stigma experienced by people who use drugs, and moral judgements about drug-taking affect policy and political decision making. Consumer adv...

Ahead of the upcoming World Conference on Tobacco Control, leading addiction and harm reduction specialist Garrett McGovern sat down with Brent Stafford to underscore the issues with Tobacco Control's rejection of tobacco harm reduction, and why following the science is the only rational approach to public health policy.

Poland is forging ahead with new restrictions on safer nicotine products, whilst still equating vaping with smoking - is this anti-THR messaging harming efforts to reduce smoking in the country? Przemysław Bobiński of #GFN25 media partner Vapour Poland joins us to discuss this and more!