Sustainable Business Movement Born in Philadelphia
As some people in sustainability circles know, Philadelphia is not just the birthplace of America, but also a vanguard city of what is often referred the Living Economy movement, or the local ECOnomy.
Under the direction of Philly’s White Dog Cafe, its proprietor Judy Wicks, and other local pioneers, a sustainable business network has served as a prototype for a local Living Economy that advances the triple bottom line (”People, Places, Profit”). This group has proven that business owners and entrepreneurs can be green and socially conscious and still be prosperous.
Wicks founded the White Dog Cafe in 1983. It subsequently grew from a coffee-and-muffin shop to a full-service restaurant serving organic and locally produced food. Committed to supporting humane farming practices, Wicks continued to search out the right food vendors until she could say for sure that the White Dog featured a cruelty-free menu. Her restaurant continued to reap profits, but she wasn’t content with simply staking out a market niche. She also wanted to share the knowledge she had acquired with other businesses, even if that meant helping out the competition.
