Columbia is one of the more highly respected educational institutions in the USA. Today, we wanted to explore what we can learn about their policy on smoking. The name of this institution may sound really familiar since it is a school that is heavily featured in movies and TV shows like Gossip Girl. Columbia is one of the college campuses that took an alternative route when it came to the whole smoke-free movement.
Smoking in Columbia
As Columbia is a campus that will see countless of individuals who may enjoy smoking, it was important for them to be clear about their smoking policy. They emphasized that smoking is a habit that has a lot of drastic and negative effects toward the health of the smoker and those around them. They made it very clear that they will strictly enforce the law that there should be no smoking within twenty feet of any campus housing or building.
They made in clear that they have a number of designated smoking areas for those that still wish to smoke. They recognize that there will be people who will still wish to smoke but aim to have an amicable policy.
What We Can Learn
When it comes to analyzing what Columbia has achieved in terms of their not 100% smoke-free campus, there are several things that can be learned. Like:
Compromise is necessary
Columbia was very clear about the fact that there are a lot of different areas on their campus that do not tolerate the presence of smoking. However, they were also able to express that they understand that not everyone in their campus will be on board the smoke-free environment. Instead of banning smoking wholesale, they went with a diplomatic route.
We can learn that compromise is necessary when it comes to striking a balance between groups of people that may have different views regarding smoking.
It can be done
There are so many other educational institutions that do not make this stand because of one reason or another. Columbia’s stand teaches us that it is entirely possible for a powerful institution like Columbia to set its own rules about smoking.
This sends the message that a smoke free establishment or public space is attainable. We merely need to make it happen in our own areas.
Always Remember
There are a lot of teachable moments in our life—we simply need to be aware of it. Columbia’s stand regarding smoking is certainly something that other institutions can learn from. Their approach at striking a balance between smokers and non-smokers is something that we all can learn from and apply in our day to day lives.
What have you learned about Columbia’s stand on smoking?
