Free continuous actions on zero-dimensional spaces

We show that every countably infinite group admits a free, continuous action on the Cantor set having an invariant probability measure. We also show that every countably infinite group admits a free, continuous action on a non-homogeneous compact metric space and the action is minimal (that is to say, every orbit is dense). In answer to a question posed by Giordano, Putnam and Skau, we establish that there is a continuous, minimal action of a countably infinite group on the Cantor set such that no free continuous action of any group gives rise to the same equivalence relation.