The Wal-Mart 2012 shareholders' meeting is one of the biggest and most extravagant meetings in the area, bringing thousands of people to northwest Arkansas, including hundreds of international associates and celebrities.The events leading up to Friday's meeting continued on Thursday, covering a variety of topics, including some the company would rather avoid.The theme for Wal-Mart's growth is living better, which they say means building jobs, a better agriculture base, healthier food and women's empowerment.Since 2005, Wal-Mart, a company with 10,000 stores in 27 countries, has been striving for zero waste. At Thursday's meeting, the company broke down the numbers for how it's progressing.As of this year, Wal-Mart is down 80 percent in waste for stores in the U.S., which has saved them a whopping $231 million and has also helped them create 1,600 jobs.