Zero is a good number when it comes to sustainability. Zero emissions. Net-zero energy buildings. And of course, zero waste. Zero waste is radical. It’s attainable. It’s good business. And it’s cool.

I’ve been excited by the idea of zero waste ever since I wrote a FORTUNE story called “The End of Garbage” in 2007. As the architect and designer Bill McDonough likes to say: “We’re not talking here about eliminating waste. We’re talking about eliminating the entire concept of waste.” Companies get excited, too. General Motors, Walmart, Procter & Gamble, Albertson’s, and SuperValu are all driving toward zero waste, as GreenBiz reported last year.

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