Introduction
Welcome to the "World No Tobacco Day" WebQuest! Observed annually on May 31st, World No Tobacco Day aims to raise awareness about the harmful effects of tobacco use and to encourage people to quit smoking. Tobacco use remains one of the leading preventable causes of death worldwide, affecting not only smokers but also those exposed to secondhand smoke.
The annual theme of the 2025 Campaign is "Unmasking the Appeal: Exposing Industry tactics on Tobacco and Nicotine products", aiming to reveal the manipulative tactics (i.e. product design, attractive flavours, marketing) the nicotine industries use to target young people and mask the dangers of their addicitve products.
Task
Through this WebQuest, students will:
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Investigate the 2025 World No Tobacco Day theme to find out how tobacco and nicotine industries use marketing tactics to influence young people.
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Analyze the health risks of smoking, vaping and nicotine addiction by examining accurate scientific evidence and public-health statistics.
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Evaluate deceptive marketing strategies and explain how they mislead consumers.
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Create an effective visual anti-tobacco campaign using digital tools to raise awareness in a clear and impactful way.
Process
Step 1: Explore the 2025 theme of World No Tobacco Day
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Explore the 2025 theme: “Unmasking the Appeal: Exposing Industry Tactics on Tobacco and Nicotine Products”.
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Investigate how the industry uses flavors, packaging, product design, and targeted marketing to attract especially young people and hide the harms of nicotine addiction.
Useful links:
https://www.chestnet.org/newsroom/press-releases/2025/05/world-no-tobacco-day-2025
Step 2: Research Health Risks of Tobacco and Nicotine
Gather information on the dangers of smoking, vaping / e-cigarettes, early nicotine addiction in youth etc. Look for current statistics on illnesses, deaths, economic costs and youth vaping/smoking rates. Be careful to use reliable sources from international and national health agencie
Identify and research tactics used by tobacco and nicotine companies, such as:
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attractive flavors (e.g., candy, fruit)
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sleek or colorful packaging
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social-media marketing
Take notes on how these tactics mislead the public and increase youth vulnerability.
Step 3: Create a Visual Anti-Tobacco Campaign
Using a Web 2.0 tool of your choice, design a strong visual campaign that exposes a tobacco/nicotine industry tactics.
Step 4: Share your work
Upload your campaign to the Padlet https://padlet.com/meddiet4health/31-5-celebrating-the-world-no-tobacco-day-anh858m9rn5897tx Don;t forget to view your classmates’ posts and leave at least one supportive comment.
Evaluation
Your work will be evaluated according to this Rubric:
| Criteria | 5 - Excellent | 4 - Good | 3 - Satisfactory | 2 - Needs Improvement | 1 - Inadequate |
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| Exploration of 2025 Theme | Thoroughly explores the theme “Unmasking the Appeal” with insightful understanding of industry tactics; uses multiple reliable sources including provided links. | Clearly explores the theme with good understanding; uses at least two reliable sources. | Adequately explores the theme but with limited detail or depth; uses one reliable source. | Limited exploration with minimal understanding; sources are few or only partially reliable. | Does not explore the theme or misunderstands it; lacks reliable sources. |
| Research on Health Risks | Comprehensive research on tobacco and nicotine health risks with up-to-date statistics from credible health agencies; explains youth vulnerability well. | Good research with relevant statistics and mostly reliable sources; explains health risks clearly. | Basic research with some statistics; explanation of health risks is general or incomplete. | Minimal research with outdated or unreliable data; health risks poorly explained. | No meaningful research or statistics; health risks not addressed or inaccurate. |
| Identification of Industry Tactics | Clearly identifies and explains multiple tactics (flavors, packaging, social media marketing) and their impact on youth; insightfully analyzes misleading aspects. | Identifies several tactics and explains their impact on youth; some analysis of misleading aspects. | Identifies some tactics with limited explanation or impact analysis. | Identifies few tactics with little or no explanation of impact or misleading nature. | Fails to identify or explain industry tactics or their effects. |
| Visual Campaign Design | Creates a compelling, creative, and clear visual campaign using Web 2.0 tools that powerfully exposes industry tactics; highly engaging and well-organized. | Visual campaign is clear and effective, exposing industry tactics; well organized and visually appealing. | Visual campaign addresses industry tactics but lacks creativity or clarity in some areas. | Campaign is unclear or incomplete; limited exposure of tactics; weak visual design. | Visual campaign missing, off-topic, or does not expose any industry tactics. |
| Sharing and Collaboration | Uploads campaign to Padlet on time; actively views and leaves thoughtful, supportive comments on multiple classmates' posts. | Uploads campaign on time; views and leaves at least one supportive comment on a classmate's post. | Uploads campaign but with minimal or late participation in commenting on classmates' work. | Uploads campaign late or does not participate meaningfully in commenting. | Does not upload campaign or participate in Padlet sharing and commenting. |
Conclusion
Through this WebQuest, students explored how tobacco and nicotine industries shape perceptions through targeted marketing and learned about the serious health risks linked to smoking and vaping. By turning their research into visual anti-tobacco campaigns, they transformed scientific information into meaningful advocacy.
Credits
Teacher Page
This WebQuest was edited by two members of USGGED,Türkiye as part of the activities of the "Mediterranean Diet for Overall Health" (MedDiet4Health) Erasmus+ project (Project number: 2023-2-EL01-KA210-VET-000183592).
Through this WebQuest, students developed health-literacy skills by interpreting scientific evidence on the dangers of tobacco, vaping, and nicotine addiction. They strengthened their critical-thinking skills by examining and exposing the misleading tactics used by the tobacco and nicotine industries. Through designing visual campaigns with digital tools, they improved their digital creativity and communication skills. Finally, they practiced collaboration, online interaction, and responsible digital citizenship, while building confidence in advocating for public health.
This WebQuest reflects only the author’s views. The European Commission’s support for the production of this WebQuest does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.