Bainbridge Island, WA. - March 23, 2009 - Bainbridge Graduate Institute (BGI) co-founders Gifford Pinchot III, president emeritus and Jill Bamburg, dean emeritas are the recipients of the Olympus Lifetime of Educational Innovation Award. Olympus, a precision technology leader creating innovative opto-digital solutions in healthcare, life science and consumer electronics products, announced today the 2009 winners in the Olympus Innovation Awards Program.

The national program, executed by Olympus in partnership with the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA), recognizes individuals who have fostered or demonstrated innovative thinking in education. The winners received their awards at NCIIA's 13th Annual Meeting last week in Alexandria, Va. Other winners included Michael Camp, Ph.D., academic director of the Center for Entrepreneurship at Ohio State’s Fisher College of Business and Andrew Hargadon, associate professor, Graduate School of Management, University of California"“Davis.

Pinchot and Bamburg were jointly granted the Olympus Lifetime of Educational Innovation Award for their significant impact on the institute and local region. Their development of programs has motivated students and colleagues to think innovatively and their curriculum infuses sustainability and social justice principles throughout traditional MBA disciplines that focus on the triple bottom line of people, planet and profit. BGI's curriculum has been adopted by several other graduate schools, and BGI is considered a leader among sustainable business programs. The Olympus Lifetime of Educational Innovation Award recognizes faculty members who have demonstrated a sustained contribution throughout their careers to stimulating and inspiring innovative thinking in students in their own universities and throughout
academia.

Pinchot and Bamburg were honored to receive the award. Pinchot commented that "Many others have done a great job of education for innovation. However, to choose individuals like Ms. Bamburg and myself who focused on innovation that helps our society to deal with sustainability, sends a clear message that using innovation to take care of people and planet is not only vitally important but it is also becoming mainstream. This Olympus award will help to convince other schools to put more focus on sustainable innovation."

Jill Bamburg & Gifford Pinchot

Bamburg said that the award underscored the importance of harnessing the power of business as a force for social change. "Creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship are key. It is positively exhilarating to work with our BGI students as they discover the power of treating problems as opportunities "“ not just to make money, but to do good in the world. And it's wonderful to see that passion spread through the work of NCIIA, Olympus and the educators present at this conference."

About BGI
Ranked #1 in Net Impact's "Business as Unusual 2008" - A Student Guide to Graduate Business Programs and selected by BusinessWeek last year as onof the top design and innovation schools in the world, BGI's pioneering MBA and certificate programs prepare diverse leaders to build enterprises that are financially successful, socially responsible and environmentally sustainable. The innovative curriculum preserves the rigor of a traditional MBA program, while infusing sustainability - environmental and social responsibility-throughout every course. www.bgiedu.org

About Olympus
Olympus is a precision technology leader, creating innovative opto-digital solutions in healthcare, life science and consumer electronics products. Olympus works collaboratively with its customers and its affiliates worldwide to leverage R&D investment in precision technology and manufacturing processes across diverse business lines.

These include:

• Gastrointestinal endoscopes, accessories, and minimally invasive surgical products;


• Advanced clinical and research microscopes;


• Lab automation systems, chemistry-immuno and blood bank analyzers and reagents;


• Digital cameras and voice recorders.

Bainbridge Graduate Institute

Bainbridge Graduate Institute

BGI was born when co-Founder and President, Gifford Pinchot, a renowned business consultant, realized the nation's graduate business schools were churning out one-dimensional MBA graduates with solid short-term profit-maximization skills, but lacking a deep understanding of how to integrate social and environmental issues into business decisions.

The Institute's pioneering MBA and certificate programs prepare a diverse group of leaders to build enterprises that are economically successful, socially responsible and environmentally sustainable. The innovative curriculum preserves the rigor of a traditional MBA program, while infusing sustainability - including both environmental and social responsibility - throughout every course.

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