10 Essential Changes for People and the Planet

I haven't shopped regularly at Walmart in four years. There isn't a single Walmart in all of Montgomery County, MD, so after we moved to Silver Spring, I stopped shopping there for convenience sake. Then a couple years ago, I watched a documentary about how Walmart is destroying the American economy, so I was happy that it was so inconvenient to shop at Walmart, and I started making a conscious effort not to shop at Walmart.

Now that we are in North Carolina, I have been tormented with trying to decide whether or not to go back to Walmart. On the one hand, it's the cheapest grocery store, and we are on a tight budget right now with two house payments weighing us down. On the other hand, Walmart is evil. Right?

I started wondering if Walmart is really as evil as I've made it out to be in my head, and if other grocery stores are really any better. The result of my search is the fantastic website www.betterworldshopper.com, which rates companies based on their social and environmental responsibility.

The verdict?...Walmart is evil, but less evil than Exxon and Philip Morris.

This is a cool chart about what changes you should make to have the most difference for people and the planet. After looking over this whole website, I've discovered I'm a B- kind of person. I'd love to be an A, but it's just too darn expensive.