Author Archives: MM Harvey

Where is Walmart on the 'Hype Cycle'?

By | Bio | Published: March 30, 2012

Michelle Mauthe Harvey co-leads Environmental Defense Fund's on-site partnership with Walmart in Bentonville, Arkansas, advancing sustainable business practices throughout its operations and supply chain. Is Walmart more hype than reality? Having worked with Walmart since 2005, my colleagues and I at Environmental Defense Fund are often asking that question, stepping back from our day-to-day work [...]

Posted in Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Innovation, Partnerships, Supply Chain Management, Walmart | 2 Responses

A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Walmart's Zero Waste Program

By | Bio | Published: March 24, 2011

In 2005, Walmart’s then-CEO Lee Scott announced his goal to generate zero waste. Vonda Lockwood, now Walmart’s Director for Store Innovations and Sustainability, remembers thinking that the zero waste goal was really going to complicate someone’s life. Shortly thereafter, she realized the newly complicated life was her own, when she was handed the task of [...]

Posted in Innovation, Paper & Packaging, Partnerships, Walmart | 2 Responses

Harvesting a Sustainable Future? Walmart's new food sourcing commitment

By | Bio | Published: November 2, 2010

Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, is also the world’s largest grocer. When the world’s largest grocer announces that it is going to change the way that it sources the food it sells, it’s a big deal. At least it could be. Time and implementation strategies will tell. But I think things are starting in a [...]

Posted in Behavior, Innovation, News Commentary, Partnerships, Safe Products, Supply Chain Management, Walmart | Leave a comment

Following the Sun: Walmart to install thin film solar panels on up to 30 new sites

By | Bio | Published: September 20, 2010

Every hour, the sun provides the earth with as much energy as all of human civilization used in an entire year. At just 10 percent efficiency—that is, if only 10 percent of that solar energy was converted to electricity—a square of land 100 miles on a side could produce enough electricity to power the entire [...]

Posted in Energy Efficiency, Innovation, Partnerships, Tools, Walmart | Comments closed

Hunting for environmental hotspots in Walmart products

By | Bio | Published: July 12, 2010

At Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), our work with Walmart focuses on leveraging the company’s buying power to reduce the environmental impacts of consumer goods. One of the clearest points of leverage is Walmart’s own store brands—Great Value, Sam’s Choice, Equate, and others that account for a sizable and growing percentage of the company’s sales. An [...]

Posted in Innovation, Paper & Packaging, Partnerships, Supply Chain Management, Walmart | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Understanding the "And" in Supply Chains

By | Bio | Published: June 10, 2010

"You think because you understand one you must also understand two, because one and one make two. But you must also understand 'and'." ~~ Rumi When I think of supply chains—and I think of them a lot, given the sustainability work I do with Walmart on behalf of EDF—I think of levels of activity. Take [...]

Posted in Behavior, Innovation, Supply Chain Management, Walmart | Leave a comment

Influencing Environmental Behaviors for the Better

By | Bio | Published: January 12, 2010

Ever wonder why some people – who seem to know the right thing to do – don’t do the right thing when asked to take action? Well, it could be that we’re asking them in the wrong way. For example, it turns out that saving money is not much of an incentive to take action [...]

Posted in Behavior, Innovation | Tagged | 2 Responses

Peeking through the Chemical Curtain with GreenWERCS

By | Bio | Published: October 27, 2009

In May, with very little fanfare, Walmart introduced an extraordinary new tool known as GreenWERCS. GreenWERCS assesses the composition of chemical intensive products – which is just about any non-food item on a Walmart shelf that you can pour, squeeze, dab or otherwise apply to your body or use in or around your home or [...]

Posted in Tools, Walmart | 6 Responses