Anti-dam movement was the origin of the foundation of MPA. Yet, the organization does not confine itself to this issue. MPA sees the dam project as part of Taiwan’s history of industrialization and urbanization at the expense of rural areas. With the broader perspective of dam project, MPA strives to establish a strong network of environmental organizations around Taiwan in order pressure the government to face the serious environmental problems confronting.

In addition to environmental issues, MPA has made great efforts in mobilizing the rural people to demand their rights and welfare that have been neglected by the central government. Although the Martial Law was lifted ten years ago, democracy is no more than a formality. The government decides almost all projects whereas the local people are not included in any form of discussion. MPA maintains that the people should be actively involved in deciding the paths of their lives.

In order to achieve the aforementioned objectives, MPA has initiated a great deal of activities. For example, many cultural activities have been held in the Yellow Butterfly Valley where the dam site is proposed. Via folk song concerts, people theater performance, and annual Yellow Butterfly Day, the local people as well as the visitors from other areas have experienced the wonder of peaceful interaction between human beings and the nature.

Hakka is one of the ethnic minorities in Taiwan, who have experienced the loss of cultural traditions and ethnic identity. MPA has made an effort to revive the Hakka cultures. They collected the old photos of the lives of the traditional Meinung people, displayed those pictures in several traditional compound houses and asked the elderly to tell their life stories. They spent two years in studying and writing the history and traditions of Meinung society and just published “Meinung Ethnography,” which has been applauded by many scholars as the best local ethnography in Taiwan.

These cultural activities are not meant to be only nostalgic to the old Meinung. MPA’s primary goal is to establish the Hakka culture that is rooted in the tradition and continue to grow. For example, an old elementary school was planning to destroy a building of Japanese style for safety reason, and build a new one to accommodate the needs of new students. Several traditionalists insisted that the old building should be conserved whereas the modernists insisted that it should be destroyed because it was dangerous. MPA managed to hold several meetings with two sides of the issue and finally decided to restore the old building and transform it to a museum, and build a new one to meet the modern needs. Moreover, the new building is designed to incorporate the primary elements of traditional Hakka and Meinung architecture, such as the compound house and tobacco house. This new building of the elementary school has been viewed by many scholars and the general public as the greatest example of incorporating the tradition and modernity on the basis of collective participation of the local community.

Although several local activists originally initiated the anti-dam movement in Meinung, MPA has become an organization of all sectors of the Meinung community as well as supporters from the cities. Out of more than 300 members, there are farmers, teachers, politicians, housewives, students and professors. MPA has been viewed as one of the best example of grass-rooted organization in Taiwan.