8. Giving Back >
8.1 Ben & Jerry’s Foundation >
8.1.4 CAT Teams
Community Action Teams
Along with its grant-making activities, the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation also organizes Community Action Teams (CATs) at each of the Company’s Vermont sites (Waterbury, St. Albans, South Burlington). These Ben & Jerry’s employee teams work with their site management to identify, undertake and underwrite community projects in cooperation with a 501c(3) approved Vermont nonprofit or a municipal entity. Members of the CATs are chosen by their peers and serve 
for three-year terms.
In 2006 the CAT community projects included:
- weeding and other tasks at the Foodbank Farm in Barre, Vermont. The farm’s mission is to grow organic produce for food banks throughout the state.
- sorting food donations at the Vermont Food Bank in Barre, VT
- painting cabins at Camp Abnaki and Camp Hochelaga, YMCA summer camps for children on Lake Champlain
blazing trails and clearing paths at the community-owned Hard’ack ski and sled recreation site in St. Albans, Vermont- working on riverbank restoration efforts along the Mississquoi River to reduce soil erosion and nutrient runoff from farms in the Lake Champlain basin
- helping with maintenance projects at community skating rinks in Waterbury and Morrisville, Vermont
- cleaning and maintenance at the North County Animal League in Morrisville, Vermont
CATs also review and decide on small grant requests for local, Vermont based, nonprofit organizations. Learn more about the CATs’ grant-making activities.