Who we are and what we do

Truth Initiative® is America’s largest non-profit public health organization dedicated to making tobacco use a thing of the past. We speak, seek and spread the truth about tobacco through education, tobacco-control research and policy studies, community activism and engagement, and innovation in tobacco dependence treatment.

 

We’ve helped bring teen cigarette use down from 23 percent in 2000 to less than 6 percent in 2018. We’re proud of that success, but our work won’t stop until we achieve a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco.

 

Known previously as American Legacy Foundation, we were established as part of the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between major U.S. tobacco companies and 46 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and five territories.

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our history

2017

In 2017, Truth Initiative published research in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, that found that over the course of a single year, truth® prevented more than 300,000 youth and young adults from starting to smoke.

2016

Teen smoking in the U.S. falls to a record-low 5.9 percent, a full percentage point drop in just one year, underscoring the success of public education campaigns like the truth® campaign and programs from the CDC and the FDA.

2015

American Legacy Foundation becomes Truth Initiative. The new name connects us to our truth® advertising campaign, tobacco-control research and health-equity interventions that are part of speaking, seeking and spreading the truth about tobacco.

annual reporting

Truth Initiative is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The organization regularly produces reports that highlight our activities and achievements and the progress we’ve made in reaching our goals. You can access our annual progress reports and financial statements here in PDF format.

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join our team

Check out our job openings if you are committed to working toward a future free of tobacco. We encourage you to get in touch whether you’re an experienced leader in your field or just starting out after school.

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Partnering with Truth Initiative

We’ve worked with established corporations along with startups just getting off the ground, and we’re always looking for creative solutions that lead to mutually beneficial outcomes.

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