The Greening of Wal-Mart’s Supply Chain

In October 2005, in an auditorium filled to capacity, Wal-Mart President and CEO Lee Scott made the company’s first speech to be broadcast to 1.6 million employees in all 6,000+ stores worldwide — and shared with its 60,000+ suppliers. Scott announced that Wal-Mart was launching a sweeping business sustainability strategy to dramatically reduce the company’s impact on the global environment and thus become “the most competitive and innovative company in the world.” He argued that “being a good steward of the environment and being profitable are not mutually exclusive. They are one and the same.” Scott also committed Wal-Mart to three aspirational goals: “To be supplied 100 percent by renewable energy; to create zero waste; and to sell products that sustain our resources and the environment.”