Start-Ups Sprout On Wal-Mart's Green Path

Wal-Mart's efforts to reduce waste and operate in an environmentally-friendly manner has fueled a green business boom in an Arkansas town near the corporation's headquarters.

1 minute read

September 10, 2007, 5:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg


"Two years ago, the world's largest retailer set out on a mission to change that reputation by promising to transform itself into an eco-friendly business. It set wildly ambitious goals to create no waste, be supplied by renewable energy and sell more sustainable merchandise."

"Critics have dismissed the effort as a public relations stunt designed to draw attention away from Wal-Mart's controversial labor and health-care policies. How successful Wal-Mart will be at greening itself remains to be seen. But there is little question that it already is reshaping its own back yard."

"A wave of start-ups developing the technology to help suppliers prove their green credentials has swept into this sleepy college town, half an hour from the company's headquarters in Bentonville."

Friday, September 7, 2007 in The Washington Post

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

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