Heart Club cleans up tobacco, raises awareness of policy issues.

University of Rochester Heart Club students recently led a highly successful tobacco-specific campus clean-up, reinforcing the university’s commitment to a healthier campus for students. Volunteers gathered at the University of Rochester Medical Center campus and collected a significant amount of discarded cigarette butts, vape devices, and Zyn pouches found across outdoor spaces.

This initiative marked the first clean-up event on campus focused exclusively on tobacco waste. The event shed light on the real impact of tobacco use on campus grounds. Thanks to the students’ leadership, the University has committed to strengthening and updating the language of its smoke-free campus policy.

In addition, these students will be taking their commitment beyond campus by advocating during the upcoming legislative session for stronger tobacco-free policies, including increasing taxes on e-cigarettes and other tobacco products to bring them to parity with the state cigarette tax.