Draft:David Meyer
American martial artist, animal welfare advocate, and entrepreneur
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David Meyer (born 1962) is an American Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner, animal welfare advocate, and entrepreneur. A member of the "Dirty Dozen" – the first twelve non-Brazilian practitioners to earn a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu – Meyer was also the first American to medal at the black belt level at the IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship.[1][2] He has won eleven IBJJF world championship gold medals over his career.[3]
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Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| David Meyer | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1962 (age 63–64) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Style | Brazilian jiu-jitsu |
| Teacher | Rigan Machado |
| Rank | 7th degree coral belt (BJJ) |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Other information | |
| Occupation | President & Co-Founder, Food System Innovations; President & Co-Founder, Humane America Animal Foundation |
Meyer co-founded Adopt-a-Pet.com, which became North America's largest nonprofit pet adoption website, and served as its CEO for over twenty years before its acquisition by Mars, Inc. in 2021.[4][5] He is President and Co-Founder of Food System Innovations and Humane America Animal Foundation.[6]
Early life and education
Meyer was born in 1962 in Los Angeles, California. When he was six, his parents enrolled him and his older brother in Japanese jiu-jitsu classes at Valley College in Van Nuys – a response to bullying his brother had faced at school. He trained under Sensei Jack Seki, practicing a modern form of Japanese jiu-jitsu, and earned his black belt at age sixteen.[1][2] He eventually achieved a 3rd degree black belt under Seki.[7] During high school, he also trained in White Lotus kung fu under Sifu Douglas Wong.[7]
Meyer attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1980 to 1985, where he studied Danzan Ryu jiu-jitsu, a style developed by Henry Okazaki in Hawaii. He served as head instructor of jiu-jitsu at the university and received an honorary black belt in Danzan Ryu under Wally Jay.[2][7]
During the summer of 1984, when UCLA's facilities were occupied by teams for the 1984 Summer Olympics, Meyer began training at Tenshin Dojo, an aikido school in North Hollywood run by Steven Seagal, who had not yet become an actor. He taught jiu-jitsu at the dojo for several years beginning in 1984.[1][7] He also trained in Thai boxing during this period.[1]
Brazilian jiu-jitsu career
Introduction to BJJ and the "Dirty Dozen"
In the early 1990s, a former student told Meyer he had been cross-training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and urged him to watch a class. Meyer visited the Machado brothers' school, where John Will – then a purple belt from Australia and Rigan Machado's first student outside Brazil – introduced him to the art. Despite holding a black belt in Japanese jiu-jitsu, Meyer found himself outmatched during sparring.[8]
After training with Will and Machado, he shut down his own martial arts class and started over as a white belt. He told his students: "You've got to come train with the Machados. I'm starting over as a white belt. You should too."[1]
About six years later, in December 1996, Rigan Machado promoted Meyer alongside Rick Williams and Chris Haueter, making the three of them part of the "Dirty Dozen" – the first twelve non-Brazilians to receive black belts in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.[9]
His lineage runs Carlos Gracie → Carlos Gracie Jr. → Rigan Machado → David Meyer. On January 17, 2026, Machado awarded Meyer a coral belt (7th degree black belt) at a ceremony in Seattle.[10][3]
Competition record
At the 1998 IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championship in Rio de Janeiro, Meyer won a bronze medal in the black belt Absolute (open weight) division, becoming the first American to medal at the black belt level at the tournament.[11][2]
Meyer has continued competing into his sixties. He has won eleven gold medals at the IBJJF No Gi World Championship between 2009 and 2025, across multiple weight classes in the masters divisions.[12][13][14][15][3] He also holds Pan American Championship and American National titles at the black belt level.[16][17]
Contributions to BJJ education
Meyer never opened his own academy, saying he "did not want to turn the thing I love into the thing I 'have to' do."[1] He did, however, co-develop the BJJ America curriculum with fellow Dirty Dozen member John Will. The program was adopted by hundreds of martial arts schools in the United States during the years before the global BJJ boom. Meyer and Will also created a grappling curriculum for Chuck Norris's United Fighting Arts Federation (UFAF).[18][3]
Animal welfare work
Humane America Animal Foundation
In August 1999, Meyer co-founded Humane America Animal Foundation with Amy Luwis and Doug McKee.[19] He remains its President and Co-Founder.
Adopt-a-Pet.com
In 2000, Meyer co-founded Adopt-a-Pet.com (originally called 1-800-Save-A-Pet.com) to address companion animal overpopulation in Los Angeles shelters.[20] As CEO from 2000 to 2021, Meyer oversaw its growth into North America's largest nonprofit pet adoption platform, with listings from over 19,000 shelters and rescue groups across the United States and Canada.[4][6]
The organization was renamed Adopt-a-Pet.com in September 2008.[21] In 2021, The NonProfit Times ranked it 15th on its list of the 50 best nonprofits to work for in the United States.[22] That same year, Mars subsidiary Kinship Partners acquired Adopt-a-Pet.com.[5][23]
Hurricane Katrina animal rescue
After Hurricane Katrina struck in August 2005, Meyer traveled to New Orleans to help lead pet rescue operations. He coordinated more than 1,000 volunteers and oversaw the rescue of over 17,000 stranded dogs, cats, and other animals. His teams set up roughly 3,000 feeding stations across the city to keep abandoned pets alive.[24][6]
When the state-designated animal shelter at the Lamar Dixon Expo Center closed in October 2005, Meyer helped establish Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO) with Jane Garrison and others to continue the work. ARNO recruited volunteers to trap, rescue, and transport animals while maintaining food and water stations across the greater New Orleans area through early 2006.[25]
Food System Innovations
Through Humane America, Meyer launched Food System Innovations (FSI), a nonprofit focused on sustainable protein and food system reform.[26] He serves as FSI's President and Co-Founder. Meyer previously served as Interim Executive Director of the Plant Based Foods Association.[26][27]
Veganism
Meyer adopted a vegetarian diet in 1985 while studying abroad in Israel and transitioned to veganism in 1993.[1] He created the website Fuel For The Fighter to promote plant-based diets in combat sports, drawing support from MMA fighters including Jake Shields, Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz, and James Wilks.[1][11]
Publications
Meyer's books include: