Who We Are

Our Mission

The mission of the Society is to stimulate the generation and dissemination of new knowledge concerning nicotine in all its manifestations – from molecular to societal

Our Shared Goals

  • To Advance Science
  • To Improve Health
  • To Save Lives

Our Core Organizational Values

Core Organizational Value #1:  Scientific Excellence and Research Integrity

SRNT is a scientific society. As such, we value scientific excellence and research that is conducted with integrity and rigor using ethical, transparent, and reproducible methods. We value the full spectrum of ethical scientific inquiry, including basic science, public health, and clinical and translational research. We value respectful scientific discussion and debate, and we seek to promote the application of scientific knowledges in the real world, to achieve our mission and purpose.

Core Organizational Value #2:  Diversity of Experience, Knowledge and Opinions

SRNT members conduct research across disciplines from cellular to societal. Our members live in many regions of the globe and have diverse regional views on issues of importance to SRNT. Our members include community researchers, students, and postdoctoral trainees and all levels of academic investigators, including early career up through senior researchers and retirees. We value this breadth of experiences and knowledges and the opinions that come with it.  The diversity of viewpoints represented within SRNT’s membership makes it stronger as an organization. We are not, nor do we strive to be, an echo chamber. As such, we welcome and encourage our members to express different perspectives on issues of importance to our mission and purpose. 

We encourage safe and respectful scientific debate at Society-sponsored events, including the annual meeting and SRNT listserv, and we seek to use our platform to support the dissemination of sound, science-based knowledges, and ideas.

Core Organizational Value #3:  Respect for All People

SRNT stands against racism and all forms of discrimination, at all levels, personal and systemic, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, Indigeneity, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, nationality, and religion. Moreover, consistent with human rights and social justice principles, SRNT actively works to ensure the Society, Society-sponsored forums, and the annual meeting are safe spaces for all members to present and share their ideas, regardless of their lived experiences, training, status, demographics, geographic identity, or other characteristics. 

Core Organizational Value #4:  Transparent Leadership

When staff, elected Board members, or other leaders within the organization make decisions, they will seek diverse perspectives from the membership and make decisions grounded in the best interests of the organization, the pursuit of our mission and reflecting our organizational values, even when those interests may differ from personal opinions, desires, or objectives. Decisions and their rationale will be transparent to members, and Board Members will strive to be good stewards of the organization’s resources, including finite financial resources.

For more about the SRNT Core Organizational Values click here

Our Statements of Commitment

  • SRNT is committed to open, ongoing communication with the membership.
  • SRNT is committed to providing a forum for open, respectful scientific debate and discussion of ideas. 
  • SRNT is committed to supporting early career researchers as they look for opportunities to grow in their chosen field through education, networking, and volunteer opportunities.
  • SRNT is committed to work collaboratively by cultivating relationships built on trust and respect, recognizing and valuing the skills and qualities of others, and engaging in interprofessional research and educational endeavors, including involvement of stakeholders in our local and global communities to achieve shared objectives.
  • SRNT is committed to infusing compassion into all aspects of the research-related activities we support.  
  • SRNT endeavors to foster empathy, understanding, and care within our organization, thereby creating an environment where individuals treat each other with kindness, consideration, mutual respect, and support.
  • SRNT is committed to supporting/standing behind groups of members who are or identify as LGBTQ+, non-white, or other minoritized groups, particularly when those groups are victims of public attacks.
  • SRNT is committed to fully supporting Networks, Committees, and all other Volunteer Activities as financial resources allow.
  • SRNT is committed to facilitating organizational grant applications and exploring other opportunities that may increase funds for travel and other conference-related support.
  • SRNT is committed to maintaining the balance of research discipline in leadership roles, to the extent possible.(i.e. having basic science, treatment, and public health perspectives represented on committees, task forces, etc.).
  • SRNT is committed to finding ways to make participation in Society activities accessible despite time zone challenges.
  • SRNT is committed to making its Annual Meeting accessible to all attendees, regardless of physical abilities or challenges.
  • SRNT is committed to supporting legislation around the globe that increases funding for nicotine/tobacco research.
  • SRNT is committed to respecting and supporting, to the extent possible, regional differences in how cessation, public health, regulation, and public policy are viewed.
  • SRNT is committed to supporting evidence-based legislation, regulation, and positions on issues around the world, acknowledging and respecting regional differences, not just in the US.
  • SRNT is committed to making its Annual Meeting as “green” and sustainable as possible.

Our Guiding Principles

 Purpose & Role

  • SRNT is a scientific society whose mission is to stimulate the generation and dissemination of new knowledge concerning nicotine and tobacco in all its manifestations, from cellular to societal.

  • SRNT is the professional society for those working on tobacco and nicotine scientific questions in pre-clinical, clinical, public health, epidemiological, and policy/ regulatory research domains.

  • SRNT is dedicated to the field, and to supporting and developing the careers of researchers in every discipline.

  • SRNT welcomes as members those working in adjacent communities (tobacco control, cessation, etc.) who are interested in the latest, cutting edge research on nicotine and tobacco.
  • As a scientific society, SRNT has a unique role, a unique identity and purpose, and a unique agenda within the broader public health/ tobacco control community. The role of a scientific society is not interchangeable with that of organizations operating in adjacent or “sister” communities.
  • SRNT’s unique role is to focus on science. Please refer to the though paper, “The Edge Zone Effect,” which articulates how SRNT interacts with adjacent communities while retaining its unique identity.
  • SRNT is a convener, bringing together researchers from multiple countries, from diverse backgrounds, across multiple disciplines, who represent a diversity of viewpoints on issues of concern to the nicotine and tobacco research community.
  • SRNT supports, without bias, the generation, dissemination, and facilitates debate of rigorous science to address challenging public health questions regardless of the direction the evidence leads.

  • SRNT is dedicated to presenting balanced views on unresolved scientific issues and makes every effort not to take positions that support one view over another, thus promoting scientific dialogue and empowering members to make their own informed decisions.

  • Regarding communication beyond the membership, SRNT will follow the evidence, disseminate balanced information based on evidence, and will be clear when the evidence is not conclusive.
  • SRNT is the voice of the scientific community and may advocate for the science by providing evidence to educate decision makers or joining with advocacy organizations on positions that are consistent with the evidence base. SRNT does not engage in lobbying local or national legislators on specific bills/legislation, nor does it direct SRNT members to lobby legislators.

Structure & Participation

  • SRNT bans employees of commercial tobacco manufacturers and their wholly or partially owned subsidiaries from membership; from participating in any Society activities, including Networks and the Annual Meeting; and from submitting research for publication in Nicotine & Tobacco Research or presentation at the Annual Meeting. E-Cigarette or other companies that are wholly or partially owned by the traditional tobacco product manufacturers are considered part of the commercial tobacco industry and are therefore subject to the same restrictions.
  • In support of its commitment to anti-racism, SRNT does not allow Conference or Journal submissions that have received funding from the historically racist  commercial tobacco industry.

  • All Conference submissions are subject to peer review. With the exception of the commercial tobacco industry, funding sources will not be the basis for decisions to accept or reject submissions.
  • All presenters and authors must comply with SRNT policies regarding disclosure of funding sources and conflicts of interest.
  • Employees of commercial tobacco manufactures and their wholly or partially owned subsidiaries are not allowed to participate in the SRNT Annual Meeting, nor are they eligible to submit abstracts for review/presentation.

  • All Annual Meeting participants are subject to SRNT’s codes of conduct.

  • Transparency regarding conflicts of interest and thoughtfully enacted participation parameters will be enforced.
  • SRNT does not engage in quid pro quo with organizations that provide funding to support SRNT, including direct or grant-funded support of the Annual Meeting. Financial support of Society programs does not entitle an organization to special dispensation.
  • SRNT’s policy prohibit receipt of funds from the commercial tobacco industry or its wholly or partially owned subsidiaries. 

Global Presence

  • SRNT is an international membership association operating on the global stage. All members are entitled to the same benefits of membership, regardless of location.
  • It is generally accepted that differences in funding levels of research by country result in dissimilar levels of research undertaken across the globe. As a result, researchers in lower- and middle-income countries may require a greater level of support than researchers in higher-income countries.

     

  • Always bearing in mind the Society’s financial and volunteer resources, SRNT is committed to addressing the very real need for capacity building in LMICs.
  • SRNT recognizes the value of partnering with adjacent communities (e.g., public policy groups and NGOs working to impact policies, regulations, and/or legislation) in LMICs.

  • SRNT will support groups working to enact, implement, and defend evidence-based policies, regulations, and laws, as financial and volunteer resources, and member engagement allow.
  • Chapters are an invaluable extension of the Society in different geographic regions around the world. Regional Chapters may be formed if certain criteria as outlined in the SRNT Bylaws are met and with approval of the Board of Directors; formation of new Chapters must be driven by members in the region.

  • Chapters are generally expected to be self-supporting but may request support for specific projects or activities.

Racial & Health Equity

  • SRNT’s Core Organizational Values, Statements of Commitment, and Bylaws address SRNT’s commitment to being an anti-racist organization.

  • SRNT publicly stands with minoritized and historically excluded communities when issues impacting those communities arise.
  • SRNT will gather racial/ethnic and gender demographic information through membership application renewal/application; abstract submission; and conference registration to better understand the racial/ethnic/gender makeup of the Society’s membership and program participants.

  • SRNT will include members from minoritized and historically excluded communities in leadership and other appointed positions, including but not limited to committees, task forces, and Network co-chairs.

  • SRNT’s journal, Nicotine & Tobacco Research, topical Networks and Regional Chapters will follow SRNT policies and principles related to racial equity.

  • The SRNT Nominations Committee will make every effort to include members from minoritized and historically excluded communities in the slates of candidates presented to members for the election of officers.
  • The SRNT Awards Committee will ensure members from minoritized and historically excluded communities are included in the deliberations of all SRNT awards.
  • SRNT’s Annual Meeting will have a dedicated Health Equity educational track, with corresponding Program Committee Co-Chair.

  • SRNT will provide training for its Annual Meeting and journal reviewers that highlights the need to consider health equity, in general, and to prioritize abstracts presentations and papers that include members of minoritized and historically excluded communities in studies, in particular.

  • Volunteer groups responsible SRNT’s online training activities (webinars, Virtual Events, etc.) are encouraged to include a health equity perspective when and wherever possible.

  • SRNT’s journal, Nicotine & Tobacco Research, will dedicate a Deputy Editor to the review of submissions related to Health Equity and to advise their editorial colleagues on papers under their respective areas of review.
  • SRNT recognizes tobacco as a plant sacred to Indigenous populations for hundreds of years. Furthermore, SRNT understands this sacred plant was coopted by European settlers for commercial purposes, which helped fuel colonization and was a driving factor in the incorporation of African slave labor. Cigarettes and other commercial tobacco products, manufactured for the purpose of nicotine dependence by a profit-driven industry, should not be conflated with tobacco used for ceremonial purposes by Indigenous peoples. 

  • SRNT recognizes Indigenous Populations’ right to self-regulate tobacco products and to be full partners in all research conducted on Indigenous groups by non-Indigenous researchers.

  • SRNT believes populations targeted by the Commercial Tobacco Industry (including Indigenous populations, Black, Hispanic, LGBTQ+) should be included in any and all nicotine addiction research, cessation research, public health research, and public policy research.

  • Because of the commercial tobacco industry’s racist history of targeting marginalized communities for profit with no regard for public health, SRNT does not allow employees of commercial tobacco manufacturers or their wholly or partially owned subsidiaries to participate in any SRNT-sponsored activities, including the Annual Meeting, Network and Chapter activities, or the Journal, nor are such individuals eligible for membership in SRNT. Nor does SRNT allow the submission of research funded by the commercial tobacco manufacturers, or any wholly or partially owned subsidiaries, for publication in Nicotine & Tobacco Research or the Annual Meeting.
  • SRNT will set the example for other research societies to follow in addressing deficiencies and becoming anti-racist.

  • SRNT will advocate for governmental funding agencies to revise grants application and review processes to better reflect health inequities in grants and research projects funded.

  • SRNT will advocate for regulatory agencies to be more proactive in considering health inequities and commercial tobacco products that target minoritized and historically excluded communities when promulgating regulations that around commercial tobacco, e-cigarette, cessation and any other consumer products related to nicotine and/or tobacco.

The first three Guiding Principles, above, were developed through a process that included stakeholder focus group comments; leadership interviews; multiple meetings of three volunteer Work Advisory Groups; a survey of the SRNT Membership; a follow up member comment period; and final review by the Board of Directors in January, 2020. The fourth Guiding Principle, was developed at the recommendation of the Racial Equity Task Force with implementation an ongoing activity.