A NATIONAL EFFORT TO REDUCE TOBACCO USE AMONG ASIAN-AMERICANS AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS

Despite the perception that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAP Is) do not have major tobacco or health problems, local studies have s hown that some AAPI groups (especially among males) have some of the h ighest prevalence of tobacco use and face some of the heaviest targeti ng by the tobacco industry. Even though the AAPI communities have a ve ry low capacity to implement tobacco control, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded Asian Pacific Partners for Empowerment a nd Leadership (APPEAL) Project has initiated and implemented some of t he first efforts to reduce tobacco use among AAPIs nationally. A liter ature review and a capacity index revealed a lack of national tobacco- control leadership efforts specifically for AAPIs. In an effort to add ress the low-capacity issues and the lack of AAPI tobacco-control lead ership models, the APPEAL. Leadership Summit was planned with particip ants representing diverse ethnic and geographic groups. The APPEAL Lea dership Summit held in August, 1997 provided an opportunity for curren t and emerging AAPI leaders to convene, interact, and develop regional plans for tobacco control. An AAPI leadership model was implemented s uccessfully to provide tailored, interactive training, and a supportiv e environment for the participants. The APPEAL Leadership Summit repre sents a first step in addressing tobacco issues for the diverse AAPI p opulation. Currently, the Summit participants are working on individua l plans to address tobacco control in their own local communities. Wit h these local, regional, and national efforts, the goal of empowering AAPI tobacco-control leaders and implementing tobacco-control activiti es may bring us one step closer to the vision of a tobacco-free AAPI c ommunity. Cancer 1998;83:1818-20. (C) 1998 American Cancer Society.