Potsdam celebrates smoke-free school classes: closing event with comedy!

Potsdam celebrates smoke-free school classes: closing event with comedy!

Brandenburg has been committed to addiction prevention for many years, especially among children and young people. A particularly successful program aimed at schools is the nationwide competition “Be Smart – Don’t Start”. For 28 years, this program has encouraged students to remain smoke-free. What is particularly pleasing is the continued participation of Potsdam schools, which are also fully committed to the current 2024/25 school year. As the city of Potsdam reports, a total of eleven schools with around 970 students took part in the competition, thereby demonstrating their determination to avoid tobacco consumption.

Medical officer Dr. Kristina Böhm emphasizes the importance of health promotion and protection at school. “Living smoke-free not only means protecting your own health, but also that of your friends and ultimately doing something for our environment,” she explains. The key to this success is an intensive six-month commitment by participants who reject all forms of smoking. This includes cigarettes, e-cigarettes, shishas and tobacco – all in all, a responsible step into the future.

Rewards for engagement

Participation in the competition does not go without recognition. On June 13th there will be a big final event at the Schirrhof in Potsdam to celebrate the successful classes. This event is already fully booked and attracts 24 registered classes. In addition to an entertaining comedy performance by Jana Jansen, students can hope for the chance to win vouchers for future class activities. Sponsors such as Adventure Park Potsdam and City-Games Berlin have provided attractive prizes. An additional incentive is that some classes can also win a voucher worth 100 euros for the class fund.

“It’s great to see how the schools and teachers are participating and supporting,” notes the medical officer. Teachers even have the opportunity to win free tickets to the Hans Otto Theater. The vouchers are handed over on site by Stefanie Buhr and the Healthy City Department, which brings additional applause and joy among the participants.

A European role model

The non-smoking competition “Be Smart – Don’t Start” was launched in Finland in 1989 and has been known throughout Europe since the 1997/1998 school year under the name “Smokefree Class Competition”, funded by the EU. The German version “Be Smart – Don’t Start” aims to make non-smoking attractive for grades six to eight of all types of schools.

The goal is not only to motivate students to give up smoking, but also to promote enthusiasm for a smoke-free school. Every year that the competition takes place, it proves its effectiveness: around 4.5 million schoolchildren have been motivated to give up smoking since it began. This stands as a positive sign at a time when demand for tobacco products, particularly among young people, is being heavily denounced.

The competition plays a prominent role in the area of ​​school-based addiction prevention. More than 180,000 school classes have taken part since it began in the 1997/98 school year, and studies show that participation in the competition can prevent an estimated 10,000 young people from starting smoking each year. “Be Smart – Don’t Start” is coordinated by IFT-Nord and comprehensively supported by the Federal Center for Health Education, the German Cancer Aid Foundation and other institutions.

Further information about the competition can be found on the “Be Smart – Don’t Start” website and on the website of the municipal addiction prevention center in Nuremberg. Anyone interested can find out more about participation and the materials that will be provided for implementation in schools here.