Spring Newsletter 2024
April 12, 2024
Welcome to the 2024 Spring Newsletter
As we embrace the energy of spring, the BWB community is alive with action. From our BRC Speaker Series now available for your listening pleasure, to the search for our next BWB Program Manager, Chapter updates, and the launch of two Civic Ignition Grant opportunities, there’s no shortage of ways to get involved.
With the 20th anniversary of BWB on the horizon in 2025, our sights are set on the future, where community, civic impact, and regenerative practices are center stage. Join us as we embark on this journey of growth and exploration.
Read on for updates about upcoming grants, events, and initiatives and discover how you can be a part of shaping a brighter, more resilient future with Burners Without Borders. Consider donating to BWB, or get plugged into more frequent updates.
BWB BRC 2023 Speaker Series Audio is Live!
The 2023 BWB Speaker Series recorded live from BRC is now available. These discussions cover sustainability, community building, creative placemaking, and impact art shared by passionate changemakers and visionaries. Connect with the spirit of BWB at Burning Man (without the dust), and tell us how you want to join the next iteration of these dialogues and conversations. Listen along here.
Burners Without Borders is Hiring a Program Manager
BWB is seeking a passionate Program Manager to join our dynamic team! Responsibilities include stewarding the BWB network and identity through relationship management, communication channels, and partnership development. An ideal candidate will be self-motivated, adept at navigating high-level strategy while also attending to on-the-ground details, and comfortable building new relationships.
Deadline for applications: March 22, 2024. Apply today.
The Return of the Civic Ignition Grants in 2024
Announcing the 2024 Civic Ignition Grants. These grants are meant to empower you to positively impact your local communities.
The grant workshops are a democratic grant process funding innovative community & civic projects within the Burning Man Global Network. The unique part of these grants is that Burning Man Regional Leaders review the grants themselves, and choose the winners within the workshop.
Be on the lookout for the Civic Ignition Grants at local events in your area. Upcoming grants workshops will be held at the European Leadership Summit (ELS) in Tallinn, Estonia from April 4-7th, The South Eastern Roundtable (SERT) in Chattanooga Tennessee April 26-28, and the Multi-Regional Summit (MRS) in Mud Bluff, Nevada May 30th – June 1st.
Stay tuned to our social media channels where additional grant opportunities will be announced. If you’d like to host a grant-making workshop in your community be sure to take a look at our toolkit.
BWB Worldwide Call – Inspiration to Action: Programs and Projects
Mark your calendars for April 24th at 5p PST / 7p CST / 8p EST / 12a GMT. We’re excited to welcome two project leads to share updates on their initiatives. The Germinator Project in Bogota, Colombia, is dedicated to revitalizing a crucial watershed, while The Pyramid Lake Spiritual Healing Center will share how they are fostering deeper connections with communities in Northern Nevada. We’ll also give a ‘State of BWB’ update on the overall program. Join the Facebook event or register here.
BWB Spring Summit at Fly Ranch (May 17-19)
The theme for the 2024 Spring Summit is “Participating in the Parable” held at Fly Ranch May 17-19. We invite you to express your interest in joining this participant-driven experience. These off-grid campouts are a co-creation and a balance of structured and unstructured exploration. Fill out this interest form to let us know if you’d like to join. Please understand that space is limited and each year we work to create opportunities for new and returning members of the community to join. Learn more about past BWB summits here.
BWB Corpus Christi
Greetings from the Gulf Coast. As the spring weather embraces us, we’re preparing for our upcoming Spring event, scheduled a few weeks after the Texas Eclipse. We’ll gather along our cherished 6.7-mile stretch of beach, adopted through the General Land Office. We anticipate a turnout of around 75 participants.
In our recent clean-up efforts, we’ve concentrated on the vicinity surrounding our camping area and addressing the abundance of microplastics and camping debris. Fortunately, the closure of the Bowl, previously used by beachgoers who were illegally off-roading, marks the end of our intensive cleanup efforts in that area. Now, we’re shifting our focus to maintaining it and addressing other critical spots on the coastline. We will be celebrating 10 years of our chapter doing events! Stay tuned for those details!
BWB North Texas
We’ve been busy so we stay out of trouble! In January, we hosted a Volunteer Appreciation Taco Bar Potluck along with a Warm Things Collection Drive. February brought BWB North Texas into partnership with Letters Against Isolation, an organization combating senior loneliness. Several burner groups met to get creative and make valentines and art for this project. This project is something that is easily replicated anywhere in the world, reach out to us for more information. In March we had two outings: The first was helping out at Minnie’s, a local food pantry. Second, we partnered with Texas Ramps to build accessibility ramps for homes. All of our meet-ups have a social element alongside the volunteering. We help out, then we hang out.
BWB San Franciso & Bay Area
A BIG THANK YOU to those who donated to the SF Burnal Equinox gathering. The donations helped to create 26 individual care packs. Members of the Burning Man Community Events team took these packs out to offer them to those in need– creating a supportive human interaction and conversation. This offer represented a choice for people who don’t always feel seen or in full agency in their lives.
The Tenderloin Community Benefit District invites anybody who wishes to get involved and volunteer with their safe passage program to assist in keeping children safe while walking to school. You can find more information here. Want to join the SF BWB Chapter? email MissConception.
BWB Vancouver
On March 1st volunteers got together in Oppenheimer Park on the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver to bring good cheer and kind words to those in need. Twenty-plus BWB-V volunteers prepared food and treats and collected clothing donations, homemade soups, grilled cheese, desserts, hard-boiled eggs and more to gift out. We interacted and connected with many people in the park – including some of the most vulnerable people in our community.
Upcoming Civic Ignition Grant Opportunities
European Grant:
Do you have an innovative community or civic project in the greater European region?
BWB is teaming up with the European Leadership Summit (ELS) in Tallinn, Estonia to provide a Grant for up to $1,500.
Application Deadline March 29th, 2024: **Apply here**
South East, USA Grant:
Do you have an innovative community or civic project within the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee or Virginia?
BWB is teaming up with the South Eastern Roundtable (SERT) in Chattanooga, Tennessee April 26th -28th to provide a grant for up to $1,500.
Application Deadline: April 22, 2024: **Apply here**
Support the #TenPiecesInitiative
Ten Pieces Initiative wants to Leave No Trace (LNT) in our natural habitats and ensure our cities are deMOOPED. To bring awareness, Doug Silton is leading a LNT campaign DeMooping the Three Passes and Everest Base Camp in Nepal before traveling to Afrikaburn. Join the movement to inspire a culture of civic responsibility. Contact Doug to get involved.
There are three ways you can support this initiative:
1) Daily actions
- Write on a reusable bag (ziplock style) #TenPieces
- Pick up ten pieces of trash daily
- Post a photo of the bag with the hashtags #TenPieces #TenPiecesInitiative #EcoTrek #LeaveNoTrace #DeMOOPTheWorld on social media
2) Volunteer to create a website for this project and to inspire people to post on social media using the above hashtags.
3) Donate to further support this project that will provide daily work for local porters to facilitate the collection of trash.
Support the Pyramid Lake Spiritual Healing Center
The Pyramid Lake Spiritual Healing Center, guided by Northern Paiute elder Dean Barlese, is a beacon of cultural preservation and spiritual guidance in Nevada. The Center, located in Nixon NV, is currently filming a video series for people to learn about local people and their traditions. They hope the wisdom in these videos will inspire viewers to support the mission of the center and to foster a deeper connection to the cultural heritage and land they aim to preserve. Join the Pyramid Lake Spiritual Healing Center journey and make a lasting difference. Matching donors are ready to double every contribution so your support will go twice as far!
Fly Ranch Stewardship Weekends (March – October)
Fly Stewardship Weekends focus on a hands-on stewardship projects while setting aside plenty of time to explore the property, soak in the hot springs, and make new friends.
Donations are optional and help cover the cost of snacks and beverages. Campouts begin at noon on Thursday and conclude on Sunday at noon.
We urge everyone attending (or thinking about it) to participate in an orientation call via Zoom on the Tuesday before each Stewardship Weekend from 6-7p PT. During these calls, you’ll be able to meet your campmates, ask/answer questions, and get any late-breaking info about our adventure.
Learn more about the Fly Ranch Project.
The Super Suz’s Burner Podcast ‘Shouting Fire’ will be featuring Miss Conception, BWB co-lead for the San Francisco Bay Area.
Listen here anytime after March 22nd to learn about all the opportunities to contribute and volunteer in the Tenderloin area of San Francisco.
A few days after the surprise attacks in the Middle East, the Life is a Festival podcast invited Midburn co-founder Sharon Avraham and Palestinian theme camp co-lead Sami Awad to discuss their recent experiences. Now, they return with updates on their involvement in the ambitious peace project, the Lighthouse. They delve into the role of spiritual communities in conflict, the impact of violence on personal relationships, and the festival community’s role in peace efforts. The Lighthouse Project, inspired by movements like Tamera, aims to foster peace in the Middle East from outside the region.
Sharon Avraham, known for his art exploring human connections, collaborates with Palestinian peace activists. Sami Awad, Executive Director of the Holy Land Trust, advocates for nonviolent resistance and global peace.
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. To donate to the continued success of BWB, click here. Any amount that you can give will go a long way in helping us to reach our goals. Thank you!
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