Ben Cohen, co-founder of the iconic Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company, encouraged students at Colgate University to align their careers with their values during a campus talk in the Memorial Chapel on Monday, April 20.
College Democrats Vice President Libby Stearns ’27 hosted a conversation with Cohen that drew a large crowd to the chapel. In addition to his ice cream fame, Cohen is also one of Colgate’s most recognizable students who never graduated.
Through personal storytelling and reflection, Cohen shared the unlikely origins of the company he built with Jerry Greenfield, describing their early struggles.
“What inspired us to get into the ice cream business was that we were failures at everything else we tried to do,” Cohen said, noting his own attempts at pottery and Greenfield’s unsuccessful medical school applications.
Cohen emphasized how important it was to him to build a business that had a purpose.
“I think you’ve got to follow your heart,” he said. “A lot of times people make the mistake of believing that the only thing you get out of work is money, and that’s not true.”
He described work as a central part of life that should feed your head, feed your heart, and feed your soul. Cohen also traced his lifelong interest in activism to his childhood during the Cold War, when he questioned the prioritization of military spending over social welfare.
“Why not spend on people’s needs instead of building up the military?” he said.
Cohen delved into his murky relationship with the current owners of the Ben and Jerry’s brand, and Jerry’s recent decision to step away from the business after 47 years. That decision followed what Cohen said was a stifling of the company’s progressive values, and in particular, opposition to the war in Gaza.
While Jerry may have left the company, Cohen said he intends to stay and to fight for change within the company, leading a #freebenandjerrys social media campaign and putting pressure on the current owners at their next shareholder meeting.
Cohen urged students to take action when confronted with injustice. “You have three options,” he said. “Ignore it, complain about it, or do something about it. I personally prefer to do something about it.”