National LGBT Tobacco Control Network: Building success through community activism

In 2001, a group of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) tobacco control advocates gathered informally at the National Conference on Tobacco or Health to discuss coordinating efforts on a nationwide level. This discussion has led to many tangeable gains in LGBT national tobacco control work, including: lobbying a major funder to include LGBTs in their target populations for tobacco funding, creating a National LGBT Communities Tobacco Action Plan, convening four national LGBT Anti-Tobacco Summits, an inventory of all LGBT tobacco control programs, and now, the formation of the National LGBT Tobacco Control Network based upon the principles outlined in the community action plan. This work has been accomplished in an environment where ever-changing funded created a constant turnover of individual leadership. The lessons learned through this history are valuable for leadership models across many health issues, and highlight the importance of a community-centered model of health leadership.