Empowering students with the facts: Life Ed. NSW and nib foundation deliver evidence-based vaping education

Life Ed NSW and nib foundation have partnered since 2019 to help young people better understand the facts and impacts of vaping. Initially we supported Life Ed to work with the Lung Foundation in developing evidence-based vaping resources for secondary students. These resources laid the foundation for Life Ed’s ongoing vaping education content.

Together, we then expanded our focus to the addition of vaping content to Reality Now, the education program for Years 7-10 that covers topics such as alcohol, smoking, drugs and peer pressure.

Through our partnership, the Reality Now program now guides students through the effects of vaping on their health and equips them with strategies to resist peer pressure. With our support, Life Ed has also expanded vaping resources to include  teachers and parents, with curriculum tools available for teachers to continue classroom learning. The program also provides facts to help parents confidently start conversations about the risks of vaping with their children.

Since the launch of Reality Now, nearly 30,000 secondary students in NSW and SA have participated in the program, strengthening their understanding of the risks of vaping, alcohol and other drugs.

A survey was conducted through the program and analysed by the Australian Council for Education Research showed:

92% of students reported that they now know about the consequences of substance use

90% reported they now feel more educated on ways to manage peer pressure.

We are proud to have supported Life Ed NSW. Through its whole-community approach, Reality Now engages students, parents, and educators, providing valuable resources and practical tools that build confidence in understanding, discussing, and addressing the impacts of vaping and other substance use.

What began as a small project to fill a gap in vaping education has evolved into a multi-year collaboration reaching thousands of young people.