In 2010, the New York University Senate passed a Smoke Free Campus policy and strengthened this policy in 2014. Smoking, including the use of electronic cigarettes, is prohibited at all times on all grounds and facilities under NYU jurisdiction, including indoor and outdoor locations such as all buildings, plazas and balconies, as well as within close proximity to or causing the obstruction of any building entrance, covered walkway or ventilation system.

Read the full policy, including a list of prohibited products and smoke free zones.

Research has shown that regular use of any kind of tobacco can have detrimental effects on a community, even for those who do not use tobacco. NYU strives to minimize tobacco use and maximize the health of our entire community, and the environment. Thank you for doing your part to keep NYU tobacco free, including but not limited to cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, snuff, snus, water pipes, pipes, hookahs, chew, and other non-combustible tobacco products within 20 feet of university property or ventilation systems.

NYU is one of over 1,000 Smoke Free Campuses in the United States.

Did You Know?

  • Tobacco use is the leading cause of premature and preventable death in the United States and the world.
  • Each year, an estimated 443,000 people in the U.S. die prematurely from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke, and another 8.6 million live with a serious illness caused by smoking.
  • The health toll is coupled with a staggering economic burden: more than $96 billion a year in medical costs and another $97 billion a year from lost productivity.
  • During their years at college, 11.5% of nonsmokers will become occasional smokers and 14.4% of occasional smokers will become daily smokers.
  • The typical nonsmoker’s net worth is roughly 50% higher than light smokers and roughly twice the level of heavy smokers.
  • Worldwide, 20-50 million trees are cut down each year for land to cure tobacco. Deforestation leads to approximately 30% of the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere each year, not only increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide, but inhibiting water recycling, triggering severe flooding, aquifer depletion, soil degradation and plant and animal extinction.
  • Tobacco production is responsible for 27 million pounds of pesticides being used just in the U.S . Many of these pesticides are known to harm small animals and cause soil depletion, while a few, like methyl bromide, cause ozone depletion.