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Vacant Walmart
Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 2 Comments | Updated on Nov 29, 2011

Can you say ‘Sprawl’? Walmart’s Biggest Climate Impact Goes Ignored

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/can-you-say-sprawl-walmarts-biggest-climate-impact-goes-ignored/

Even as Walmart has been hyping its supposed environmental epiphany, it has continued to unroll vast, low-rise supercenters at breakneck speed. Since 2005, Walmart has added more than 1,100 new supercenters, almost all built on land that hadn’t been developed previously. Continue reading

Walmart store aisle green label
Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Nov 22, 2011

Walmart’s promised green product rankings fall off the radar

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/walmarts-promised-green-product-rankings-fall-off-the-radar/

In 2009, Walmart unveiled grand plans to create a Sustainability Index that would, within five years, result in green labels for all the products it sells. Two and a half years later, the project has fallen far short and seems unlikely to ever deliver a green rating system. Nor is there much evidence that greener products are edging out more damaging ones on Walmart’s shelves. Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Nov 18, 2011

Think Walmart uses 100% clean energy? Try 2%

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/think-walmart-uses-100-clean-energy-try-2/

In 2005, Walmart announced that it was setting a goal of being “supplied by 100 percent renewable energy” — and has since received a steady stream of positive press for its commitment. But six years later, the giant retailer still derives less than 2 percent of its electricity from its solar projects and wind-power purchases. At its current pace of converting to renewables, it would take Walmart about 300 years to get to 100 percent clean power. Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Nov 11, 2011

Is your stuff falling apart? Thank Walmart

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/is-your-stuff-falling-apart-thank-walmart/

Chairs don’t hold together like they used to. Neither do toys, toasters, vacuum cleaners, or Levi’s. Walmart, with its relentless demands that manufacturers cut costs, has been a major force in making our products shoddier — and that has us heading back to the store more often to buy still more stuff. Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Nov 7, 2011

Walmart’s greenwash: Why the retail giant is still unsustainable

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/walmarts-greenwash-why-the-retail-giant-is-still-unsustainable/

The world’s biggest retailer has gotten lots of great press since it launched its sustainability campaign six years ago, but in many key areas it hasn’t actually gotten greener. It’s pumping out more CO2, paving over more land, and selling more flimsy products than ever before. In this Grist special series, ILSR’s Stacy Mitchell takes a hard look at Walmart’s real environmental impact. Continue reading

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Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 2 Comments | Updated on Sep 10, 2011

Don’t Subsidize Big Boxes at Local Shops’ Expense

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/dont-subsidize-big-boxes-local-shops-expense/

Handing out multimillion-dollar subsidies to large chains has become commonplace in much of the country. But when governments use public money to woo national chains, economic growth and job creation are negligible, and independent retailers suffer, Stacy Mitchell argues in this commentary for Business Week.

Continue reading

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Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 5 Comments | Updated on Jul 22, 2011

Why is Michelle Obama’s food initiative promoting Walmart?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/why-michelle-obama-s-food-initiative-promoting-walmart/

I winced yesterday when James Gavin, chair of the Partnership for a Healthier America, said he’d like to see Walmart double its U.S. store count. He was speaking at Michelle Obama’s event announcing that several retailers will open stores in “food deserts.” It was a sort of half-jokey remark, but, still, in a conversation about food in America, the suggestion that Walmart should have an even bigger role in our food system is pretty disturbing. This is a company that already captures 25 percent of grocery sales nationally and more than 50 percent in some metro areas. Continue reading

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Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Jun 1, 2011

In South Africa, Wal-Mart Refuses to Buy Local, Threatens WTO Action, and Wins

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/south-africa-walmart-refuses-buy-local-threatens-wto-action-and-wins/

Despite the ample publicity Wal-Mart has engineered for its "buy local" efforts, the company in fact has zero interest in cultivating local suppliers beyond stocking a few token local veggies suitable for a nice photo-op. Continue reading

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Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 1 Comment | Updated on Apr 28, 2011

Wal-Mart Could Easily Pay $12 an Hour

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/walmart-could-easily-pay-12-hour/

Raising the pay of Wal-Mart’s U.S. workers to a minimum of $12 an hour would lift many out of poverty and cost the average consumer, at most, $12.49 a year, according to a new study published by the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education.  Continue reading