Nick Cooney (born c. 1981) is a managing partner at Lever VC, an investment fund focused on alternative protein companies.[1]
Nick Cooney | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Alma mater | Hofstra University (Non-Violence Studies) |
| Occupation | Managing Partner at Lever VC |
| Notable work | How to be Great at Doing Good, Veganomics, Change of Heart |
| Website | nickcooney |
He co-founded the Good Food Institute and was co-founder and Managing Trustee of New Crop Capital.[2][3] He is the author of three books: Change of Heart (2010), Veganomics (2013), and How To Be Great At Doing Good (2015).[4][5][6] He previously worked for the non-profit organizations Mercy for Animals and Farm Sanctuary, and was the founder of the non-profit organization The Humane League.
Early life and education
editNick Cooney was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[7] Cooney received a bachelor's degree in Non-Violence Studies from Hofstra University in 2003.
Policy and non-profit work
editIn 2005, Nick Cooney founded The Humane League in Philadelphia, a non-profit organization that works to protect animal welfare.[8] Cooney is one of several people who provided information used in the writing of the book Striking at the Roots: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism (2008) by Mark Hawthorne.
Since then, Nick Cooney's work promoting alternative proteins and animal protection has been featured in media outlets including CNBC,[9] Yahoo Finance,[10] Food Navigator,[11] The Guardian,[12] and the Wall Street Journal.[13] He has also delivered lectures at international conferences and on university campuses.[14][15][16]
Cooney previously worked as campaign coordinator at the non-profit Farm Sanctuary, and as executive vice president at the non-profit Mercy for Animals. He is currently a director with the non-profit Lever Foundation.[17]
The Good Food Institute and New Crop Capital
editNick Cooney is former board chairman and co-founder of The Good Food Institute.[18][11] He is also co-founder and former managing trustee of New Crop Capital, a private venture capital trust that invests in plant-based and cultured meat, dairy, and egg companies.[19][20] These two organizations collaborate to support the plant-based and cultured food companies.[21]
Lever VC
editNick Cooney is founder and currently Managing Partner at Lever VC, a U.S.-Asian venture capital fund investing in early stage alternative protein companies.[1][22]
Books
edit- Cooney, Nick (2010-09-20). Change of Heart: What Psychology Can Teach Us About Spreading Social Change. Lantern Books. ISBN 9781590562451.
- Cooney, Nick (2013-11-22). Veganomics: The Surprising Science on Vegetarians, from the Breakfast Table to the Bedroom. Lantern Books. ISBN 9781590564288.
- Cooney, Nick (2015-04-27). How To Be Great At Doing Good: Why Results Are What Count and How Smart Charity Can Change the World. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781119041719.
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b "Plant protein startups vie to tap China's hungry market". Reuters. 2019-03-21. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
- ^ "Bloomberg - Nick Cooney". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
- ^ Gunther, Marc (2016-04-06). "New Crop – the vegan venture fund fighting for animal rights". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
- ^ "Nick Cooney". good reads. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
- ^ Cooney, Nick (2013). Veganomics: The Surprising Science on What Motivates Vegetarians, from the Breakfast Table to the Bedroom. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1-9869-3649-1.
- ^ How To Be Great At Doing Good by Nick Cooney, Narrated by James Fouhey, retrieved 2020-10-04
- ^ Cooney, Nick (2007-09-05). "Activist Profile: Nick Cooney". Vegan Outreach.
- ^ "The Humane League Linkedin". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2017-01-07.
The Humane League is a 501(c)3 and Certified Best In America by the Independent Charities of America... Nick Cooney, Founder.
- ^ "Investor: I wouldn't bet against the plant-based meat space". CNBC. 2019-06-11. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
- ^ "Nick Cooney and Lever VC Invest In The Good Spoon Foods". finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
- ^ a b Watson, Elaine (2020-08-18). "Lever VC launches new fund targeting alternative protein: deploys first $5m in 10 startups spanning plant-based eggs to cell-cultured breastmilk". Food Navigator USA. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ Cooney, Nick (2014-10-23). "Can vegetarianism help to solve NFL's problems with violence?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
- ^ Yang, Stephanie (2019-12-05). "American Companies Are Hungry for a Cut of China's Fake-Meat Market". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
- ^ "Legal Battles in the Food Industry: A Conversation with Nick Cooney from Farm Sanctuary". 2013-11-04. Archived from the original on 2017-10-18. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
Nick Cooney, founder of the Humane League and then employed by Farm Sanctuary (now working for Mercy for Animals), spoke about his involvement with activism and farm animals.
- ^ "Ivy League Vegan Conference". 2013-02-13. Archived from the original on 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
- ^ "Nick Cooney IARC Speaker Profile". ar-conference.org. 2013-09-12.
- ^ "Nick Cooney Biography | Lever VC, Managing Partner | New York City". NickCooney.com. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
- ^ "Sentience Conference". Retrieved 2017-01-10.
...founder and Board Chair of The Humane League, Board Chair of The Good Food Institute, and Managing Trustee at New Crop Capital
- ^ Gunther, Marc (2016-04-06). "New Crop – the vegan venture fund fighting for animal rights". The Guardian. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
Besides funding, Friedrich, Cooney and Kerr provide their portfolio companies with access to like-minded investors and to consumers who want to avoid meat
- ^ Cooney, Nick (2019-04-09). "What's In A Bio? The New Nick Cooney Biography". Medium. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
- ^ Byrd, Emily (March 6, 2017). "Plant-Based Power Couple". Retrieved January 7, 2018.
- ^ "Investing in the future of protein". Lever VC. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
Interviews
edit- Cooney, Nick (2010-12-10). "Interview Series #18: Nick Cooney". Kiss Me, I'm Vegan! (Interview). Interviewed by Lindsay Wolf. Archived from the original on 2011-08-29. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
- Cooney, Nick (2011-03-31). "Interview with Nick Cooney". Vegan Outreach (Interview). Interviewed by Matt Ball. Archived from the original on 2011-05-04. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
- Cooney, Nick (2011-08-20). "ARZone interview with Nick Cooney". Animal Rights Zone Transcripts (Interview). Retrieved 2015-06-06.
- Cooney, Nick (2020-05-20). "Nick Cooney of Lever VC // investing in alternative protein startups". Upside (Interview). Interviewed by Jay Clouse. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
- Cooney, Nick (2019-06-11). "Investor: I wouldn't bet against the plant-based meat space". CNBC Squawk Alley (Interview). Retrieved 2020-10-02.
- Cooney, Nick (2020-08-17). ""Covid Adds Yet Another Tailwind - Investor Nick Cooney on Opportunities for Alternative Protein Fund Lever VC". Just Food (Interview). Interviewed by Dean Best. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
- Cooney, Nick (2020-08-18). "Lever VC launches new fund targeting alternative protein: deploys first $5m in 10 startups spanning plant-based eggs to cell-cultured breastmilk". Food Navigator (Interview). Interviewed by Elaine Watson. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
- "Conversation with Nick Cooney, Executive Vice President of Mercy For Animals". ACE (Interview). Retrieved 2020-10-02.
Other articles
edit- Cooney, Nick (2013-08-06). "Changing Vegan Advocacy from an Art to a Science". Humane Research Council. Archived from the original on 2015-04-16. Retrieved 2015-06-07.
- "Nick Cooney and Lever VC Invest In The Good Spoon Foods". Yahoo Finance. 2019-11-01. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
- Nick, Cooney (2013-06-06). "Self-interest can make the world a better place—for animals, at least". Quartz. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
- "Book Review: Nick Cooney's Change of Heart". Vegan.com. 12 January 2011. Retrieved 2020-10-02.