[EDCYC, 1-24-21]
The El Dorado County Youth Commission collaborated with the Health and Human Services Agency’s Tobacco Use Prevention Program to create a photovoice project focused on increasing awareness regarding predatory retail marketing and unhealthy advertising to kids. The photovoice project was implemented to demonstrate the problem of unhealthy advertising in the retail environment through a youth visual lens.
Project staff chose to use the curriculum provided in Counter Tobacco’s Focus on Big Tobacco Toolkit. The photovoice technique was selected to expose the marketing strategies used by the tobacco, alcohol and food industries and, by involving youth in the documentation process, to educate communities about the risk of unhealthy marketing.
The photovoice project offered an opportunity to collaborate with El Dorado County Alcohol and Drug Prevention Programs as they are advocates for health and also support enactment of health-promoting policy interventions. Together, project staff determined that this activity was best suited for El Dorado County’s Youth Commission. Project staff discussed the possibilities of a photovoice project with the Youth Commission advisor early in year two of the scope of work period.
Youth Commission participants learned about tobacco and alcohol marketing and how it impacts behavior and health; how to document through the photovoice method; take part in group discussions and activities; identify and discuss themes that emerge from their photos; and identify actions they can take as a group to use their photography to educate the public and work toward policy change.
The photovoice is narrated by a Youth Commission participant and was translated with Spanish captions. The photovoice project was finalized in January 2020 and will be showcased throughout El Dorado County along with the Healthy Stores for a Healthy Community retail store observation data results. The El Dorado County Youth Commission PhotoVoice Project with Spanish captions can be found on YouTube
by at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fhoPih_mJY&feature=youtu.be
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