By Deborah Fleischer •
August 25, 2009
When WalMart finally unveiled their new Sustainability Index, I found the 15 questions a bit underwhelming. Especially, after all the press and fuss (you can download the questions from the WalMart web site).
For example, the first question, “Have you measured your corporate greenhouse gas emissions?” is so simplistic, that a yes answer could mean many things. Scope 1? Scope 2? Have they taken on the challenge of addressing the full supply chain?
GreenBiz.com offers some advice for getting the most out of the questions, if you are a Walmart supplier that is just beginning to think about environmental issues.
By Deborah Fleischer •
August 25, 2009
I had the opportunity to be a sustainability coach to some of the Clean Tech Open semifinalists last week.
The Annual Business Competition provides green mentoring and sustainability workshops to help clean tech entrepreneurs integrate sustainability into their business plans. And I found myself stressing the business case for why integrating green made business sense.
While some of the companies we met with were very committed to sustainability, others seemed to be going through the motions because it is required by the competition.
I understand CEOs of start-ups have many competing issues to focus on.
I thought it might be helpful to review here the three key reasons why it is makes good business sense to invest in sustainable business practices:
It will save you money
It will provide better access to capital
It will drive top-line revenues
