Bainbridge Graduate Institute Commits to 100% Renewable Energy,
Joins EPA Green Power Partnership
Groundbreaking MBA in Sustainable Business to Participate in SOLAR 2004 Conference

June 28, 2004 (Bainbridge Island, WA) - Bainbridge Graduate Institute (BGI) announced today that it has purchased Green Tags from Bonneville Environmental Foundation sufficient to offset 100% of its annual electricity usage at its administrative offices, located on Bainbridge Island, Washington. The purchase of Green-e certified wind and solar power certificates for the administrative offices completes BGI's commitment to renewable energy.

BGI also recently announced that its monthly classroom sessions will be held at IslandWood, a Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) gold-certified environmental education center on Bainbridge Island that features a solar photovoltaic power system. And BGI's off-grid eco-retreat center on Cortes Island, BC, where students kickoff the school year with an eight-day retreat, also features an on-site photovoltaic (PV) solar system and solar-heated showers.

With today's announcement, BGI joins an elite group of higher education institutions that have made a commitment to sustainable energy and joined the Green Power Partnership, a voluntary U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) partnership dedicated to supporting the use of renewable energy.

"We are pleased today to welcome BGI as a Green Power Partner," said Kurt Johnson of the U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership. "BGI qualifies for the Partnership's Green Power Leadership Club, which recognizes substantial green power purchases."

"Our purchase of Green Tags is a natural extension of our mission to teach sustainable business practices," said Rick Bunch, executive director of BGI. "We want to set a standard not only for what we teach, but how we teach it, including a commitment to implementing 'sustainable business best practices' in our own operations. Buying renewable energy was our next logical step in reducing our overall environmental footprint."

A pioneer in the field of management training, BGI offers a groundbreaking MBA in Sustainable Business. The program preserves the rigor of a traditional MBA, while infusing corporate ethics, environmental sustainability and social responsibility throughout every course.

Many BGI students are creating businesses related to alternative energy and green design and are learning about sustainable business practices from internationally known experts like Amory Lovins and John Ehrenfeld, as well as distinguished business school professors from across the country.

"As an alternative energy consultancy my company inherently offers a 'sustainable' product. BGI's MBA program is teaching me how to go beyond that to ensure that the business models and strategies I'm implementing in my company are also responsible and sustainable," said Kevin Hagen, founder of Shuksan Energy Consulting, a renewable energy consulting firm that advised BGI on its renewable energy strategy and green power procurement.

"We want firms committed to alternative energy and green design to know that there is now an MBA program for them," added Bunch. "Our comprehensive approach to sustainable business training makes our program the perfect match for entrepreneurs and managers who want to build profitable businesses that also build a better world."

Founded in 2002 by renowned corporate intrapreneurship consultants Gifford and Elizabeth Pinchot and Dr. Sherman Severin, BGI's MBA program is growing rapidly, next year the school plans to more than double enrollment, admitting an additional 50 MBA students.

Designed for working students, the program combines distance learning with monthly, face-to-face classroom sessions. In addition to the MBA program, BGI offers a Certificate Program in Sustainable Business and periodically opens individual classes to the public.

BGI is authorized to grant the Master of Business Administration degree by the Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) and meets the requirements and educational standards established for degree-granting institutions under the Degree Authorization Act.

For more information about BGI's programs stop by our exhibit booth at the 2004 National Solar Energy Conference in Portland or visit us online at www.bgiedu.org.

BGI is now a U.S. EPA Green Power Partner. Nationwide, the Green Power Partnership now includes over 350 organizations - including Fortune 500 companies, states, federal agencies, trade associations and universities - that have made a combined total commitment of over 1.4 billion kilowatt hours of green power annually. Additional information is available at www.epa.gov/greenpower.

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