Smoke-Free Air in Switzerland

While Switzerland is significantly behind many of its European counterparts with respect to national smoke-free laws, civil society organizations have pushed their local jurisdictions to make major steps toward smoke-free air. By implementing change at the local level, these organizations are not only protecting their constituents, but also creating an example for the rest of the country to follow. Local laws in Switzerland have been and will continue to be a catalyst for change at the national level. The Swiss experience included a number of tactics that may be universally employed:

• Use the democratic system to your advantage
• Once there is a model in a jurisdiction, target new jurisdictions view themselves as similar
• The first step sets the standard
• Preemption is never good
• Try to get hospitality groups on your side or neutral
• Identify messaging that speaks to the local public.