Student-led vaping prevention campaign launched
4th December 2025
Young people in Colac have taken the lead in a bold new campaign to tackle vaping in the community.
Students from Colac Secondary College and Lake Colac School have designed a range of posters, pavement stickers and a video to enhance awareness about the dangers of vaping and empower youth with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions.
The project was funded through a broader VicHealth Vaping Prevention Grant secured by a regional coalition of agencies including Colac Area Health (CAH) and Colac Otway Shire Council.
The Health Promotion Team at CAH, supported by Council’s Youth Engagement Service, also provided 17 vaping education sessions in five schools across the shire, with over 300 students participating.
Mayor Jason Schram said it was positive to see so many young people participate in this project, both through the education sessions, and developing the posters, pavements stickers and video.
“This has been a great chance to share youth voices in our community,” Cr Schram said.
“The feedback received from the education sessions was that young people wanted to hear from their peers about the dangers of vaping.
“It’s great to see the creativity, time and effort that the students have put into developing the campaign material,” Cr Schram said.
School students across the shire also took part in a regional survey which showed that over 44% of young people didn’t think there was enough information about the harms of vaping.
Over 61% of young people were rejectors of vaping, meaning they never had and probably never would vape. More than 10% of young people across the region had tried vaping but hadn’t vaped at all in the last few months.
Colac Area Health Executive Director of Community Health, Kay Widdicombe said the project had empowered young people to take an active role in reducing vaping in their communities, while strengthening awareness and leadership around health promotion.
“The students involved in this campaign have done a fantastic job of creating hard-hitting material with strong messages about the serious health impacts of vaping like anxiety and depression, impaired brain development and lung damage.
“There is positive news that after seeing a rapid rise in vaping amongst Australian 14-17 year olds in recent years, we are now seeing these rates fall from 18% in early 2023 to now 15% in 2025.”
Colac Secondary School Principal, Skye Bannan said the school was proud of their students for leading an important conversation about vaping in the community.
“Their honesty, creativity, and willingness to take action shows the strength of young people when they are empowered with the right support.
“By working alongside Colac Area Health, Council and our neighbouring schools, our students are helping to create a healthier future for all young people in Colac,” Ms Bannan said.
If you would like to download and print the campaign posters, or have placement stickers installed, please contact the Health Promotion Team at Colac Area Health on 03 5232 5100.
For more information about Colac Area Health’s nicotine management services, which are available to young people free of charge, visit Nicotine Management Service - Colac Area Health.
Council Enquiries
(03) 5232 9400