2023 Annual SRNT-E Conference

Keynote Speakers

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Dr. Stéphanie Caillé-Garnier

Research Director at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) and Institute for Cognitive and Integrative Neurosciences of Aquitaine, University of Bordeaux.

Dr. Caillé-Garnier obtained her doctorate in Neurosciences and Neuropharmacology from the University of Bordeaux in 2000. Upon joining the CNRS in 2005, the researcher's primary focus was on the consequences of chronic drug exposure in rodents, with a particular emphasis on nicotine, opioids, and the endocannabinoid system. Subsequently, she shifted the focus of her research to the investigation of predictive factors associated with vulnerability to addictive behaviors. As a Principal Investigator (PI) or co-investigator on several university and national agency funding projects, she elucidated the role of interindividual differences, whether attributable to sex differences, cognitive or emotional profiles, in the expression of vulnerability to drug of abuse.

Beyond her academic research, Dr. Caillé-Garnier has served as a national and international expert on public health and regulatory matters. Since 2017, she has contributed as a scientific expert to ANSES (French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety) in the working group on tobacco and vaping products. Furthermore, she was a key contributor to the European "Joint Action on Tobacco Control" from 2017 to 2020, where she helped shape science-based policy recommendations. 

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Luk Joossens

Senior Policy Advisor, Smoke Free Partnership, Brussels, Belgium

Keynote Title: Reflections on 50 years of tobacco control in Europe

Luk Joossens obtained a Licence de sociology, KU Leuven, Belgium, March 1972 and Maîtrise en sociologie, Sorbonne, Paris, November 1972. Since then, for almost 50 years he has contributed to the different aspects of tobacco control, such as the eight editions of the Tobacco Control Scale (2006-2026), passive smoking, advertising, labelling, taxes, smuggling (1995-2025), tracking and tracing, tobacco industry tactics, Belgian and EU tobacco control policy, FCTC, Protocol to eliminate illicit trade in tobacco products. 

Luk Joossens worked closely together with consumer organisations (1973-2003), Europe against Cancer progamme (1988-1995), International Union against Cancer (strategic leader 2006-2009), European Cancer Leagues (1995-2020), Belgian Foundation against Cancer (2003-2016). Framework Convention Alliance (2007-2012), Smoke Free Partnership (2022-2026). He advised extensively international bodies on tobacco control such as the World Health Organization (from 1990 to 2025), the World Bank, The European Commission and the FCTC secretariat. In 2006, he received the American Cancer Society “Luther Terry Award” for Outstanding Individual Leadership in Tobacco Control and in 2015 the World Health Organization Director-General’s Special Recognition of Contribution to Global Tobacco Control.

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Dr Cristina Martínez

Head of Cancer Prevention Programme and Tobacco Control Unit at the Catalan Institute of Oncology, University of Barcelona Associate Lecturer, Faculty of Nursing, University of Barcelona

Keynote title: Why Evidence Is Not Enough: Making Smoking Cessation Happen in Hospital Care

Dr. Martínez is a senior researcher in tobacco control and implementation science. Her main areas of research include the evaluation of tobacco control policies in health care services, by assessing the impact of smoke-free policies and evaluating the effectiveness of smoking cessation and training programs. She is currently developing and testing the effectiveness of tobacco cessation training programs among healthcare professional students, and she is also evaluating policy interventions to promote smoking cessation among vulnerable persons (mentally ill or with substance abuse disorders) and promoting smoke-free environments in private settings (homes).

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Dr Tessa Langley

Associate Professor in Public Health Economics and Evaluation, Nottingham Centre for Public Health and Epidemiology, University of Nottingham, UK

Keynote title: Beyond Health: The Economic and Equity Implications of Tobacco and Vaping Policies

Dr Tessa Langley is an Associate Professor in Public Health Economics and Evaluation. She completed an Honours degree in Economics and Economic History at the University of Warwick, followed by a Master’s in Public Health at the University of Nottingham, before continuing to a research role, PhD and subsequently an academic position at the University of Nottingham. She specialises in public health economics and evaluation, with a focus on tobacco control and e‑cigarette policy. She has led numerous studies evaluating tobacco control policies in the UK and assessing the economic impact of tobacco use, highlighting how reducing smoking rates not only improves health but also helps reduce economic inequalities. In addition to her research, Dr Langley is a member of the Royal College of Physicians’ Tobacco Advisory Group, contributing to regular evidence reviews on tobacco and nicotine policy, and serves as Deputy Editor of Nicotine & Tobacco Research.

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Conference Programme

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On Monday, 11. September, we will start the day with pre-conference workshops before the start of the main programme at lunch time.

Tuesday, 12. September, will be a full day of excellent symposia, talks and posters.

On Wednesday, 13 September, we will have another full day of the latest developments in nicotine and tobacco research, finishing at 16:00 after the closing ceremony and poster prizes.

Please click on the below link to download the conference programme and the poster presentations.

Conference opening debate and pre-conference workshops

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On Monday, we will open the conference with a stimulating debate.

From all the propositions submitted in response to our call, the following was chosen:

"Is nicotine use rational?"

We have for you a great panel of experts who will discuss this proposition:  

  • Dr Wayne Hall, Emeritus Professor, National Centre for Youth Substance Use Research, The University of Queensland 
  • Dr Lynne Dawkins, Professor of Nicotine and Tobacco Studies, Centre for Addictive Behaviours Research, London South Bank University 
  • Dr Yael Bar-Zeev, Braun School of Public Health and Community Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem -Hadassah Medical Center
  • Dr Lion Shahab, Professor of Health Psychology, Department of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London.

On Monday, there are two pre-conference workshops.

Pre-conference workshop 1: Meet the editor of Nicotine and Tobacco Research, with Marcus Munafo

Pre-conference workshop 2: The Addiction Ontology and how to use it when designing, reporting and using studies

Speakers: Robert West, Sharon Cox, Caitlin Notley, Kirstie Soar

Background: The field of nicotine and tobacco research needs more clarity, consistency, and coherence in the usage of terms and constructs. 'Ontologies' are computer-readable ways of achieving this. They are a way of representing knowledge whose use is growing rapidly in science, engineering, and commerce and underpin artificial intelligence programmes to improve the efficiency of science. The 'Addiction Ontology' (AddictO) and a key part of this, the 'E-Cig Ontology' (E-CigO), together with the Behaviour Change Intervention Ontology (BCIO) have been under development for several years and are now sufficiently evolved to be able to be used in research, policy, and practice.

Aims: To provide participants with guided hands-on experience in using AddictO/ECigO when designing, reporting, and using studies, and to build a community of practice that can help evolve these ontologies over time.

Content: The workshop will begin with a recap on why the field needs to embrace ontologies as a matter of routine, giving examples of the huge wasted effort and resource that arises from a lack of clarity in the way that key constructs are defined and labelled. It will then introduce participants to the ontologies, including their scope and structure, including tobacco and nicotine use behaviours and products as well as details of factors influencing behaviours such as aspects of identity, motivation, and addiction. It will then introduce the online tools that have been developed to visualise, search and explore these ontologies for constructs that one wishes to include in protocols reports, and interventions. It will then guide participants through exercises to help them become proficient in easily referencing ontology entities in their papers using bibliographic tools such as Zotero and Endnote. Finally, it will include a discussion about next steps and how to get involved in a community of practice to further develop these ontologies