The Madison County Action Team (MCAT) was founded as a grassroots community organization in 1998 and incorporated as a non-profit in 2001. The group’s primary focus at that time was planning and zoning issues in Madison County, and its original mission was “to engage a broad group of citizens in decisions and actions that foster economic, environmental, and social progress for Madison County."
In 2003, the mission was revised to include “sustainable economic, environmental, and social progress for Madison County and surrounding communities,” and the primary project was a farmers' market/community center serving the "MERJ" community of rural homesteaders in Madison, Estill, Rockcastle, and Jackson Counties.
One important consistency throughout MCAT's diversity of leadership and projects is our demonstration and expression of citizen power for finding and living solutions for a sustainable future. MERJ Media consists of several communication and media outlets for sharing cultural, social, and ecological issues, including newsletters, list-serves, social networks, a film festival, and local culture/art productions.
MCAT produced a printed newsletter called Act Locally about local environmental and community development issues from 2000-2001. During 2004-2005, the Act Locally newsletter was revived to report on MCAT/MERJ projects, highlight local farmers and non-profits, and consolidate information about sustainability-related events and resources.
The "E-MERJing News" blog is the evolution of the Act Locally newsletter in an electronic format that is collaborative, interactive, and adaptive. It is also the result of the MERJ community's ongoing interest in local cultural and sustainability-related events.
MERJ Media has co-produced the annual Clear Creek Film Festival since 2007, and MERJ Market partners with the Clear Creek Festival to help provide local food and access to a community kitchen. MERJ has also helped document the overall festival with video footage in collaboration with other videographers and festival fans. Check out our Clear Creek Festival playlist on YouTube... And maybe we'll see you there on Labor Day weekend!
In 2003, the mission was revised to include “sustainable economic, environmental, and social progress for Madison County and surrounding communities,” and the primary project was a farmers' market/community center serving the "MERJ" community of rural homesteaders in Madison, Estill, Rockcastle, and Jackson Counties.
"MERJ Memories" YouTube Video Playlist of Farmers' Market at Pilot Knob
One important consistency throughout MCAT's diversity of leadership and projects is our demonstration and expression of citizen power for finding and living solutions for a sustainable future. MERJ Media consists of several communication and media outlets for sharing cultural, social, and ecological issues, including newsletters, list-serves, social networks, a film festival, and local culture/art productions.
MCAT produced a printed newsletter called Act Locally about local environmental and community development issues from 2000-2001. During 2004-2005, the Act Locally newsletter was revived to report on MCAT/MERJ projects, highlight local farmers and non-profits, and consolidate information about sustainability-related events and resources.
The "E-MERJing News" blog is the evolution of the Act Locally newsletter in an electronic format that is collaborative, interactive, and adaptive. It is also the result of the MERJ community's ongoing interest in local cultural and sustainability-related events.
Since 2004 MCAT/MERJ has also offered and maintained several local and regional list-serves for local sustainability efforts, cultural events, workshops, and resource-sharing: MERJ Market (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MERJmkt), MERJ Media (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MERJmedia/), and SustaiNetwork (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SustaiNetwork). There is also a fledgling online social network (http://merjmarket.socialgo.com) specific to the MERJ area and designed for the diverse needs of the local sustainability community.
