BACKGROUND AND IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGES: Youth tobacco control faces significant challenges in China, with college students’ daily smoking rates (4.7%) substantially higher than high school students (1.5%). Traditional advocacy approaches often lack youth engagement and sustainable impact. To address these challenges, Peking University pioneered China’s first collegiate tobacco control debate competition as an innovative strategic advocacy intervention.
INTERVENTION OR RESPONSE: The intervention utilized a theory-driven approach combining Strategic Health Communication Model and Advocacy Mobilization Theory. The debate competition integrated evidence-based tobacco control knowledge with competitive debate format, engaging university students nationwide. Implementation included systematic topic design, expert consultation, multi-platform promotion, and live-streaming integration. The program employed comprehensive evaluation methods including pre-post surveys, social media analytics, and qualitative feedback assessment.
RESULTS AND IMPACT: The initiative engaged 12 universities across China, generating substantial social media impact with over 5 million Weibo topic reads and 150,000 live stream viewers. Quantitative assessment showed significant improvement in participants’ tobacco control knowledge (p<0.05) and advocacy capabilities. The competition catalyzed formation of university tobacco control advocacy networks and stimulated sustained youth engagement in tobacco control initiatives. Media coverage included 48 positive reports across major platforms, amplifying the advocacy impact.
CONCLUSIONS: This pioneering practice demonstrates the effectiveness of competitive debate as an innovative tobacco control advocacy strategy. The model offers a reproducible framework for engaging youth in tobacco control through intellectual discourse and peer influence. The experience provides valuable insights for modernizing youth tobacco control advocacy globally, particularly in leveraging competition formats for public health advocacy.