The Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University placed ninth in a just-issued ranking that looked at how well 600 of the world's full-time MBA programs integrate social and environmental knowledge in their courses and culture.

The "Beyond Grey Pinstripes" ranking is issued every two years by the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the Aspen Institute and is the only global ranking of its kind. Its premise is that MBA graduates require a thorough understanding of social, economic and environmental-stewardship issues to achieve business success in a competitive global economy.

In the rankings, released Oct. 19, the Johnson School was cited for offering a large number of business courses that address these issues and the large proportion of students who take them.

The school is home to the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise, which promotes research and programs on ways that private enterprise can achieve financial success through the solution of the world's social and environmental problems. One example -- cited in a July BusinessWeek story about the trend toward teaching sustainability in business schools is the work of Johnson School students in Kenya this summer helping local youth groups and small-scale farmers generate business ideas and linking them with a major corporation.

"The Johnson School is proud to be ranked among the top schools on this survey," said Robert Swieringa, the Anne and Elmer Lindseth Dean of the Johnson School. "By establishing the Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise, we have shown everyone how serious we are about these issues and our desire for our students to make a real impact in this area as they join the marketplace."

Stuart Hart, the Samuel C. Johnson Professor of Sustainable Global Enterprise, who heads the center, said, "We are pleased to have done so well in these rankings and to have been highlighted for educating tomorrow's business leaders in the importance of sustainability in the world."

In the previous WRI and Aspen Institute survey in 2003, the Johnson School was among 15 schools cited for being on the cutting edge or having significant activity in preparing MBAs for social and environmental stewardship.

WRI is an environmental think tank that looks for practical ways to protect the Earth and improve people's lives. The Aspen Institute trains leaders for a sustainable global society through its Business and Society Program. For a full description of the 2005 report see http://www.beyondgreypinstripes.org.