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Overview

Teens Talk Vaping is a research project funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to better understand the place of vaping (e-cigarettes) in the everyday lives of Canadian teens. Taking a ‘by-youth-for-youth’ approach, a key feature of the project is inclusion of teens trained as ‘co-researchers’ to meaningfully contribute to all aspects of the study, from data collection, to analysis, to dissemination. This short film, created by several teen co-researchers, shares key themes derived from teen-led focus groups conducted with teens aged 13-19 years from across Canada. To bring viewers into teens’ perspectives and experiences, the film takes a first-person view, following a ‘day in the life’ through the eyes of a high schooler going through the motions of a typical day – from attending school where they are exposed to vaping in the washrooms, to party culture on the weekend where vaping is a prevalent activity, to social media where vaping content in omnipresent. By anonymizing the figure and evoking an emotional journey, the film captures some of the tensions teens face in navigating vaping opportunities and decisions in different everyday environments. The film aligns with the mandate of the CIHR Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health to support research that improves the health and development of young people in Canada and our participatory teen-centred approach supports the Institute’s work to foster meaningful inclusion of youth in its activities.

Dr. Jason Gilliland, University of Western Ontario, Co-Principal Investigator & Mentor

Dr. Stephanie Coen, University of Nottingham, Co-Principal Investigator & Mentor

Asma Khanani, Creative Development Lead & PhD student

Laila Girum, Teen Co-researcher, Video production

Purushoth Megarajah, Teen Co-researcher, Video production

Timothy-Jireh Elep Dela Cruz, Accessibility Lead, Video production

Music composed by Aniqa Qadir.