Say hello to the Kick Butts Collaborative. We are a collective in Western New and the Great Lakes basin including Buffalo-Niagara Waterkeeper, Buffalo Niagara Greenway, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Buffalo Sewer Authority, Erie County Department of Environment and Planning, Community Canvases, Hamburg Butt Kickers, WNY Trash Mob, City of Buffalo Reuse and Recycling, Buffalo-Niagara … Continued 
339,716. That’s how many cigarette butts were collected in the Great Lakes Basin (including our very own Lake Erie) in volunteer cleanups in 2019. Add 44,822 cigar tips plus 1,868 other tobacco product related waste (think discarded vape pens) and you get the number one form of litter found in the Great Lakes. You also … Continued 
Today, with immeasurable sadness, we mourn the loss of a true trailblazer and pioneer of tobacco control and healthier living, Phil Haberstro. Team members past and present gathered virtually to share their reflections: “Phil is one of those unsung heroes of the early, formative efforts that shaped how we do tobacco control today.” – Andy … Continued 
We can’t move into 2020 without a look back on 2019. In this post, we share the comprehensive perspective of our acclaimed leader, Dr. Andrew Hyland. As head of the tobacco control programs at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Director of the New York State Smokers’ Quitline, and researcher who has spent 25 years working … Continued 
With Christmas exactly one week away, we take you back to a time when Santa was a pitch man for Big Tobacco. Once upon a time, cigarettes were a Christmas present favorite – the gift that kept on giving (cancer). While kids were busy unwrapping their dolls and toy cars, dad was opening his carton … Continued 
It’s been one month and one day since Illinois reported the first death from vaping in the U.S. on August 23, 2019. The CDC and FDA have been working tirelessly to compile data on the hundreds of cases coming in from across the US. While they continue looking for a definitive answer on the cause … Continued 
To gear up for our booth/table at the earth-friendly Flutterby Festival on August 10th, we sent a team of volunteers to Elmwood Avenue recently to pick up those smelly, nasty predators known as cigarette butts. Our goal: To raise awareness about where cigarette butts do (and don’t) end up when smokers are done smoking them. … Continued 
Reality Check groups of Western New York recently came together at Beaver Hollow in honor of World No Tobacco Day on May 31. On the youth summit agenda were three days of ice breaking, team building, and s’more eating, just to name a few of the highlights. Group activities and workshops prepared youth advocates to … Continued 
The stars made quite a scene on Oscar’s red carpet this year. Community health partners and Reality Check youth leaders from across Western New York upstaged them with a fashionable statement of their own: let’s get the smoking scenes of the screen. Here’s a photo gallery of our communities commemorating International Week of Action, an annual … Continued 
Thursday, November 20 was a day for smokers to quit for the day and get smoke and tobacco products out of their lives. But it was also a day that our public health partners, Reality Check teen advocates and teachers across Western New York seized upon to rally support for getting smoke out of our … Continued 
