WSJ: Wal-Mart Warms to Al Gore

[DeepModem Mom]

Wal-Mart Warms to Al Gore

Former Vice President and environmental activist Al Gore is planning to address Wal-Mart Stores Inc. executives next week at the retailer’s quarterly conference on sustainability, part of the company’s recent efforts to become an environmental leader, a Wal-Mart spokesman confirmed.

Gore will speak on global warming, the subject of his recently released documentary "An Inconvenient Truth." The conference is an outgrowth of Wal-Mart’s mission, outlined by Chief Executive Lee Scott last November, to minimize its negative impact on the environment. At the time, Wal-Mart committed to, among other things, reduce energy use in its stores, improve the fuel efficiency of its truck fleet and substantially cut down on solid waste produced by its stores.

Wal-Mart has seized on the issue of sustainability in an effort to bolster positive public relations at a time when its various business practices have been heavily criticized, from its worker pay and health benefits to its effect on smaller retailers. Still, the company has attempted to make changes. For example, it outfitted its trucks with an alternative power unit that uses 90% less fuel than its engines do while idling. The company created 14 internal networks to explore and implement more environmentally sound business practices. The 14 groups, made up of both Wal-Mart executives and outside experts, focus on different business areas, including operations and logistics, food and agriculture, textiles, global greenhouse gas and jewelry and mining....

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2006/07/06/wal-mart-warms-to-gore/

[IndyOp]

1. Hm. Is it possible that Wal-Mart could grow a heart? A conscience?

Go President Gore!

[reprobate]

2. NO! Everything they do is to increase profits. Gore=popular, therefor

They warm to Gore for the publicity.

[ladjf]

3. No. But, I'd rather that they back the "green movement" for

valid monetary reasons. It doesn't have to be a matter of ethics.

[hatrack]

4. Yup - all about the Hamiltons - greater effiiciency = cost savings

Even Lee Scott can see that.

[ladjf]

6. If one cared to press this same principle far enough it would

indicate that things that people do that harm the general quality of life are bad and those that improve the quality are good. In other words, in the long run, it's dumb to do bad things and smart to good ones. The treatment of the environment is a perfect example of how this applies.

[hatrack]

7. "Long run"? What is this "long run" you speak of?

I did not hear its name in business school . . .

[ladjf]

11. Yes. Now days, the concept of the "long run" seems rather alien.

[Kolesar]

15. I think you are referring to "externalized costs"

Costs that are are transferred onto others in society or onto Earth.

[Sherman A1]

8. Not a prayer

of that happening, it's bottom line only....

[susanna]

19. From my own experience, I'd say no....

I think it's that dreaded corporate "flavor of the month" scheme that management tries to get the worker bees to swallow. The worker bees understand that the "flavor of the month" will soon change, and so fly under the radar without implementing anything of actual value. (But they do the lip service thing when pop-tested by their supervisor.)

That said, how amazing is it that they're listening to Gore? Geez.

[goforit]

5. These assholes are responsible for Bush being office and sabatoging

Kmart, their competition, via sabatoging Martha Stewart.

I Won't buy one stick of gum there.

[jseankil]

10. tin foil hat anyone?

or are just joking around?

[w4rma]

9. If Wal-Mart wasn't feeling public backlash from their buisness practices

they wouldn't even pretend to be doing a darn thing. This is good.

[samsingh]

12. i hope President Gore gets paid for his time

this also shows how powerful Gore is getting.

[kurth]

13. "Sustainability" of what? Of the race to the bottom?

[Psephos]

14. Uh oh. I sense an oncoming bout of cognitive dissonance here. n/t

[amandabeech]

16. Wal Mart may have heard from its insurers.

Many of the large insurers and reinsurers are believers in global warming. It is possible that their clients have received no-nonsense information from them.

Money talks.

[Kenergy]

17. Sounds to me like

we are affecting their bottom line. Seriously.
Walmart is only interested in the bottom line, and imo, we've hurt their sales figures.
They're seeing the handwriting on the wall.

[bling bling]

18. Who cares "why" they're doing it.

Any company that voluntarily makes environmentally conscious changes to their existing business practices gets kudos from me.

[Voltaire99]

20. If you're helping to legitimize Wal-Mart, you're part of the problem.

If Gore wants to help, let him do something other than be a beard for the world's most corrupt corporation. Providing Wal-Mart execs with a green photo-op is, well, bonkers.

The real action, as usual, is elsewhere: see the current issue of Harper's for the antitrust case against Wal-Mart.