Ben Cohen Speaks at Colgate University on Values-Based Careers

Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's ice cream, told Colgate University students Monday to align their work with their values, speaking in Memorial Chapel in Hamilton.

Cohen, who attended Colgate but did not graduate, described how he and Jerry Greenfield started the ice cream company after failing at other ventures. "What inspired us to get into the ice cream business was that we were failures at everything else we tried to do," he said, citing his unsuccessful pottery work and Greenfield's rejected medical school applications.

He urged students to view work as more than a paycheck. "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," Cohen said. Work should feed one's head, heart, and soul, he added.

Cohen traced his activism to childhood questions during the Cold War about why the government spent on military buildup rather than social needs. Last year, Greenfield left Ben & Jerry's after 47 years, citing the company's retreat from progressive values, particularly its opposition to the war in Gaza.

Cohen plans to stay with the company and push for change through a #freebenandjerrys social media campaign and pressure at upcoming shareholder meetings. He told students they face three choices when confronted with injustice: ignore it, complain, or act. "I personally prefer to do something about it," he said.