2026 Summer Newsletter
August 4, 2026
Read the newsletter in its original format here
Strong communities don’t happen by accident. They are built in the small moments when someone notices a need, calls a few people, and decides to roll up their sleeves.
Across the BWB network, that instinct takes many forms. Renewable energy is powering response efforts in Venezuela. BWB Chapters are learning how to organize and direct resources together. At Fly Ranch, nearly 300 people gathered to build, learn, celebrate, and practice stewardship as something lived.
This is BWB at its best: people growing the skills, trust, and relationships needed to act together.
We hope the stories in this issue help you see your own place in that work. You don’t need to have everything figured out. Start with what you know, who you know, and what is needed where you are.
Thank you for being part of this community. Join an upcoming event, stay connected, or support BWB with a donation. There is plenty to do, and we’re grateful to be doing it alongside you.
Burners Responding to Venezuela Earthquakes
This June, two back-to-back earthquakes struck Venezuela, causing widespread destruction. BWB partner Sail Relief is deploying renewable energy to support rescue operations, field hospitals, and emergency communications. Working alongside A Hand From Above and Los Topos Aztecas, they are demonstrating that effective disaster response is an ecosystem of organizations, each contributing their strengths.
🧩 Connected to a community or response team that could use support? Email bwb@burningman.org.
Burners Responding in Menasha, Wisconsin
As we were preparing to send this newsletter, our community sprang into action once again. Recent tornadoes swept through parts of Wisconsin, USA. One community member put out a call for “disaster relief, Burner style” in the BWB Worldwide Group, and local Burners quickly transformed theme camp infrastructure into a neighborhood mutual aid hub. This is what it looks like when our principles become practice.
Green Regionals Grant: Applications Open Now
Do you have an idea that could make your Regional Event or 10 principled gathering more sustainable, regenerative, and resilient?
The Green Regionals Grant is accepting applications for projects that rethink how we generate energy, reduce waste, steward resources, and care for the land. With $30,000 available, we’re looking for practical, innovative, open-source solutions that can inspire and be replicated across the network.
🌏 Learn more and apply by September 27th
Connect with Burners Without Borders in BRC
Heading to Black Rock City? Connect with BWB throughout Burn Week, from conversations at Center Camp to hands-on volunteer opportunities. Come and connect with other change-makers.
📝 Fill out our interest form here
BWB Solstice Summit: Living Ritual
This June, 299 participants gathered at Fly Ranch for the largest Summit to date. With the theme ‘Living Ritual’ and the 40th anniversary of the first Man burn, we explored how a culture built around temporary gatherings can deepen practices of stewardship and year-round community.
Part campout, part conference and part living laboratory, the Summit continues to build on the pillars of serve, learn, and celebrate. From off-grid communications to solar-powered infrastructure, participants explored ideas, built projects, and celebrated the regenerative future we are building together.
BWB × Rotary International: An Emerging Collaboration
What started with a cross-playa bike ride and a simple introduction between a Burner and a Rotarian has grown into shared leadership gatherings and an emerging work project in Gerlach, NV.
📕 Read the full story and 🤝 Join the fellowship.
Civic Ignition Grants Winners Announced
We’re thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2026 Civic Ignition Grants from both the European Leadership Summit (ELS) and the Burners of New Zealand & Australia (BoNZA) Leadership Summit.
Across both grants, 23 projects applied, requesting more than $28,000 USD. While the grants provide direct support to four outstanding community-led initiatives, the Civic Ignition Grant program is about more than just funding.
During the leadership summits, participants took part in facilitated workshops where they evaluated proposals and practiced consensus-based decision-making. In doing so, they built the skills and relationships that will continue to strengthen their communities beyond the grant cycle.
And the winners are…
European Leadership Summit (ELS)
The Mobile Dignity Shower Project by BWB UK (Dunkirk, France)
Host Art Workshops for Refugee Children by Love Without Borders 4 Refugees (Athens, Greece)
👀 Read the full ELS winners announcement here!
Burners of New Zealand & Australia (BoNZA)
Hidden Pūpūrangi by Elise Koncsek (Whangārei, Aotearoa/New Zealand)
The Green Room by Rain and James Wickham (Nimbin, NSW, Australia)
👀 Read the full BoNZA winners announcement here!
▶️ Want to bring collaborative grantmaking to your community? Check out the Civic Ignition toolkit.
After supporting Collexodus at Apogaea, BWB-Colorado continues to build momentum. In July, chapter members hosted a successful volunteer cleanup at Red Rocks Park, and this September they’ll help coordinate Collexodus at Elsewhence.
If you’re in Colorado and looking to get involved, now is a great time to connect and join upcoming projects. Email colorado@burnerswithoutborders.org to learn more.
On July 11, volunteers from BWB-South Bay joined the Morgan Hill Rotary Club for a community cleanup at Galvan Park, an example of the growing collaboration between Burners and Rotarians.
Get involved with BWB South Bay! Email genghis@burningman.org to learn more.
BWB-Sacramento and Connected By Our Humanity are celebrating another year of their creative arts program with The Gathering Inn after the Arts Council of Placer County renewed its support and increased funding from $2,500 to $4,500. Building on a successful first year, the expanded funding will help bring more expressive arts programming to individuals experiencing homelessness throughout Placer County.
The BWB-UK community is actively meeting, building connections, and beginning to develop new projects. If you’ve been interested in getting involved, now is a great time to jump in.
Whether you’re looking to volunteer, collaborate on a project, or simply connect with others who share a passion for civic engagement, the group would love to welcome you.
Reach out to jj@burnerswithoutborders.org to learn more about upcoming meetings and how to get involved.
Black Rock Compost Returns to BRC for 2026
For the 11th year, Burners are turning food scraps from Black Rock City into healthy soil instead of sending them landfill. GYST (Get Your Sh*t Together) at 7:00 & A will serve as the official compost collection site, accepting dry food scraps from 3–6 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of Burn Week. Note: No Wednesday collection.
🍒 Be part of the Black Rock Compost community by registering your camp, volunteering, or learning what can and can’t be composted. Learn more here.
Join BLAST 2026: Get Your Camp Sustainability Score
BLAST 2026 is here—with a new way to participate.
This year, your camp joins BLAST by playing the Green Radius Game, a quick self-assessment covering Food, Water, Waste, Transportation, Shelter and Power.
See what your camp is already doing, discover where you can grow, and receive a downloadable Green Radius badge when you finish.
Play by August 10 to enroll your camp in BLAST 2026:
https://www.greenthemecampcommunity.org/blast
Help Build the Commons with 7 Billion Presidents
What if every purchase could help create a more just and regenerative world? 7 Billion Presidents is growing a network of purpose-driven businesses committed to reinvesting 100% of their profits into communities rather than private shareholders. Their long-term vision is to transform profits into shared assets—placing land and buildings into community trusts where they are stewarded for the common good.
▶️ Join the conversation at 7billionpresidents.org.
If you’re interested in regenerative economics, cooperative ownership, and building alternatives to extractive systems, explore their work.
Inside Disaster Relief: ShelterBox’s Immersive Weekend
Interested in disaster response and community resilience? Join ShelterBox USA’s Advocate Field Experience (S.A.F.E.) on September 11–13 in Echo, Oregon. This immersive weekend puts participants in realistic humanitarian response scenarios, offering hands-on insight into how emergency shelter and aid are delivered after disasters.
📦 Learn more and register here
Climate Shifted
In this episode of Climate Shifted, host Eva Frye speaks with Dr. Renee Lertzman, a pioneer in climate psychology who is transforming how we communicate about our planet’s future. While most climate messaging bombards us with facts or terrifies us with doomsday scenarios, Renee’s approach taps into something deeper: our human need to feel heard before we can change.
Experience the 2026 BWB Solstice Summit through the eyes of Terry ‘Problem Child’ Pratt.
From garden tending and desert storms to celebrating four decades of Burning Man, this personal reflection uniquely captures the creativity, community, and overall spirit of the weekend
BWB exists because of YOU
Over the years, your participation and generous support have enabled this creative community to accomplish so much around the world.
BWB is known for helping real people solve real problems. The unique gifts this community brings to the international stage are quickly transforming what people think is possible.
To continue doing this important work, we need your help. Consider donating to the continued success of BWB. Any amount that you can give will go a long way in helping us to reach our goals.
Stay Connected: Explore The BWB Ecosystem: Current News, Social Media Channels, & Get Involved.
