Integrative and Functional Nutrition Academy Certification advisory board member, Brenda Davis Brenda Davis, RD

Brenda Davis, RD, is one of the world’s leading plant-based pioneers and an internationally acclaimed speaker. She is widely regarded as a rock star of plant-based nutrition and VegNews referred to her as “The Godmother” of vegan dietitians.

Brenda has been a featured speaker at medical, nutrition, and dietetic conferences in over 20 countries on 5 continents. Her most interesting adventures include a personal consult and lecture for a member of the royal family (and his staff) in Saudi Arabia (with colleague, Dr. Michael Greger), a lifestyle intervention demonstration project for the medical community in Lithuania (with colleague, Dr. John Kelly), and serving as the lead dietitian in a diabetes intervention research project in the Marshall Islands. On her last trip to the Marshall Islands (November 2017), she developed a nutrition education curriculum for kindergarten through grade 6 and trained teachers in all public schools.

As a prolific nutrition and health writer, Brenda has authored/co-authored 12 books with nearly a million copies in print in 15 languages. Her most recent works include Nourish: The Definitive Plant-based Nutrition Guide for Families (Shah and Davis, 2020), Kick Diabetes Essentials (Davis, 2019), The Kick Diabetes Cookbook (Davis and Melina, 2018), Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive Edition (Davis and Melina, 2014) and Becoming Vegan: Express Edition (Davis and Melina, 2013). Nourish won gold in the 2020 Nautilus Book Awards and was also a Canada Book Award winner. Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive Edition won a 2014 REAL Best of 2014 Book Award and Becoming Vegan: Express Edition won the Canada Book Award and was a finalist and received honorable mention in the Foreward Book of the Year Award. Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive and Express Editions have also received a star rating by the American Library Association as the “go-to books” on plant-based nutrition.

Brenda has co-authored numerous professional and lay articles. She is a past chair of the Vegetarian Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group of the American Dietetic Association. Brenda has been promoting plant-based diets since making the transition herself in 1989. Her personal and professional life goals are one in the same – to make this world a more sustainable, more health supportive, and kinder place. Brenda’s work focuses on ensuring that everyone who wishes to be plant-based can succeed brilliantly. In 2007, Brenda Davis was inducted into the Vegetarian Hall of Fame.