Marketing & Communications Marketing & Communications

Cotopaxi, truth® Team Up to Empower Communities to Take a Stand Against Tobacco

In recent weeks, outdoors organizations such as The North Face and Paradox Sports have been making marked efforts to make positive changes in local communities across the US with the rollout of new campaigns and initiatives that aim to spark conversations around inclusion.

By Sustainable Brands | Published 7 years ago | About a 2 minute read

In recent weeks, outdoors organizations such as The North Face and Paradox Sports have been making marked efforts to make positive changes in local communities across the US with the rollout of new campaigns and initiatives that aim to spark conversations around inclusion. Outdoor gear company Cotopaxi is the latest to join the conversation, partnering with smoking prevention campaign truth® to encourage communities to take a stand against tobacco.

Cotopaxi announced the partnership on Tuesday at the Philadelphia kickoff of its annual Questival adventure race — a souped-up scavenger hunt where participants race to complete 300+ challenges and community-driven experiences. The two organizations will use the nationwide event to educate and empower participants to make informed choices about tobacco use.

Attendees visiting Questival ‘truth® zones’ will learn facts about tobacco use and engage in a series of mental and physical challenges to win truth® merchandise such as t-shirts, pins and sunglasses. The organizations also partnered with Brooklyn-based artist Kevin Lyons to create a limited-edition truth® x Cotopaxi Luzon Daypack for the event.

“While the teen smoking rate is at a historic low of six percent, tobacco rates in communities differ based on where you live, whom you love and even who you are, making change at the community level an essential part of our movement,” said Eric Asche, Chief Marketing Officer of Truth Initiative, the national public health organization that directs and funds the truth® campaign. “Cotopaxi’s commitment to social good and improving communities makes them the perfect partner to join us in engaging young people to help us end tobacco use nationwide.”

Tobacco is still the number one cause of preventable death, killing more than 540,000 people each year. In 2014, truth® launched the FinishIT campaign to encourage teens to make this the generation that ends smoking for good by taking action nationally and locally through social media and on-the-ground community efforts.

“Connecting with audiences at these 25 Questival events allows us the opportunity to enlist ‘Finishers’ in the cities that need them the most,” said Asche “To us, ‘Finishers’ are the individuals making an impact on the tobacco issue within their own community. Big or small, every action taken toward ending tobacco use saves lives — from enlisting online to wearing the truth x Cotopaxi by Kevin Lyons Luzon Daypack and sharing our facts with friends.”