[6][8] He holds degrees from Johns Hopkins University and the London School of Economics, and received his J.D.

degree from Georgetown University Law Center, graduating magna cum laude, Order of the Coif.

As Head of Public Campaigns, he led many of the organization's highest-profile campaigns,[11] including one from the early 2000s when PETA asked the Green Bay Packers football team to change its name, which had originated from a defunct meat packing plant in the Green Bay area.

[14][11] In recognition for his work at GFI, Friedrich was named an "American Food Hero" by the Eating Well magazine in 2021.

[5] Friedrich is a TED fellow;[9] in 2019, he gave a TED Talk that has since been viewed more than 2.3 million times and translated into more than 30 languages arguing that plant-based and cultivated meat have the potential to transform the global meat industry, preventing climate change, mitigating pandemic risk, and decreasing the prevalence of antibiotic resistant pathogens.