UC Berkeley’s Plant Futures Challenge Lab has announced that pioneering plant-based entrepreneur Miyoko Schinner will join as a co-instructor for the upcoming fall semester.
Launched in 2021 by then-students Brittany Sartor and Samantha Derrick, the Plant Futures Challenge Lab runs a course every spring and fall for undergraduate, graduate, and PhD students across various disciplines. The aim is to make connections between academia and the plant-based sector. In the coming semester, Schinner will teach alongside Sartor, who is the Program Director.
Described as “a vital platform for the plant-based food and agricultural sector”, The Plant Futures Challenge Lab has partnerships with notable plant-based, cultivated, and fermentation-based companies, including Beyond Meat, Daiya, Upside Foods, Meati, and Bond Pet Foods. Additionally, the initiative works with nonprofits such as the Better Food Foundation, Mercy for Animals, Friends of the Earth, and GlassWall Syndicate.
Through these partnerships, students are given the opportunity to address real-world challenges, engage with industry leaders, and help shape the future of food.
“Unparalleled experience”
It was announced last year that Miyoko Schinner had exited as CEO of the company she founded, Miyoko’s Creamery, and was “no longer involved in day-to-day operations”. Responding on LinkedIn, Schinner explained that there had been conflict about the best way to grow the company while staying in touch with the brand’s core principles of animal rights.
Schinner is a bestselling author and respected speaker who is widely known for her animal advocacy as well as her business experience. She is the founder of a farm animal sanctuary in California called Rancho Compasión, which cares for around 70 animals. The Plant Futures Challenge Lab has praised her work with the sanctuary’s youth education program, along with her “expertise and passion”.
“Miyoko has been a hero of mine since I became vegan 21 years ago, and we are beyond excited to have her join us as a co-instructor,” said Brittany Sartor. “Her unparalleled experience and compassionate approach will be invaluable to UC Berkeley students as they explore the intersections of innovation, sustainability, and ethical food systems.”
