Colleen Patrick-Goudreau (born March 8, 1970 in Westfield, New Jersey) is an American writer, activist, public speaker, and cooking instructor. Having earned a master’s degree in English Literature Seton Hall University, Colleen uses her writing and communication skills to raise awareness of the animal issues about which so many people are unaware. She is a sought-after and inspiring public speaker on the spiritual, social, and practical aspects of a vegan lifestyle.

Raised on a typical American diet of meat, dairy, and eggs, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau was shocked by what she learned when she read John Robbins' "Diet for a New America" at 19. No longer able to justify eating mammals, Colleen began a journey of discovery that continues to this day. Eventually she included fish in her circle of compassion, and after reading "Slaughterhouse", it became clear to her that no animal raised for human consumption - whether for their flesh, milk, or eggs - escapes the horrors and cruelties of slaughter. Determined to raise awareness about animal suffering, she founded Compassionate Cooks to be a voice for the animals killed every year in the U.S. for human consumption. She dedicates the work she does through her cooking classes, cookbooks, podcast, writings, and cooking DVD to them.

Colleen teaches cooking classes in the San Francisco Bay Area to local, national, and international residents. She is also a long-time instructor for Dr. John McDougall’s Wellness Program and an instructor for Dr. Neal Barnard’s Cancer Project.

With the intention of providing others with the tools and resources needed to inspire people to cook healthfully and compassionately, Colleen has embarked on her Compassionate Cooks Instructor Training Program and is teaching others to do what she does so effectively.

Colleen Patrick-Goudreau is the author of two very popular cookbooks, The Joy of Vegan Baking, which won VegNews Magazine’s “Cookbook of the Year” Award, and The Vegan Table". (On Amazon.com, a popular place for reviews, both books have 200 5-star reviews between the two of them.) Colleen is currently working on a third, called Color Me Vegan.

Colleen’s podcast, Vegetarian Food for Thought, is the most popular vegetarian, vegan, and animal rights podcast on iTunes. She has testimonials from thousands of people (many of which are posted on iTunes) about how this podcast changed their lives. (There are 20,000 downloads a month of her podcast.)

Her cooking DVD, Vegetarian Cooking with Compassionate Cooks grew out of her Oakland, CA-based cooking classes.

Colleen has been a long-time columnist for VegNews Magazine with her popular column VegGuru. She has appeared on The Food Network and is a contributor to KQED Radio’s editorial program, Perspectives. She also publishes two newsletters, Food For Thought and Soup to Nuts.