REGIONAL NETWORK
We Are Everywhere
2022 was a huge comeback year in the Regional Network. Communities around the world connected in creative ways — hosting meetups, micro burns, civic activities, and organizing Regional Events and Decompressions.
In-person official Regional Events came back in a big way. Seventy percent of events held in 2019 returned for 2022 — often with care, thoughtfulness, and new ideas. For some, a release of pent up creative energy brought forth powerful and playful art. For others, Burners were just happy to spend time in theme camps catching up with friends.
“Home extends all around the world. The Regionals led the charge with burns taking place globally long before the ‘big Burn’ in summer 2022. Rather than weakening the movement, the enforced hiatus of the past two years has done the opposite; finally reunited, we burned all the brighter.”
~ Roxane Jessi, author of Once Upon a Time in the Dust: Burning Man Around the World, “Regionals Reawaken,” Burning Man Journal, spent 12 months participating in seven Regional Burns on six continents
The largest Regional Event in 2022 was Israel’s Midburn, which gathered 8,000 participants in the Negev Desert
“This year’s Midburn showed us the strength of community. We had to follow sound restrictions and it wasn’t easy news to bring. We didn’t know how it would affect the character of our city, the mix of the people… a new experiment, and I have to say a very successful one — not because it’s ideal to have sound restrictions, it’s not. But it was a learning: how creating together is powerful, and how much we can do when we collaborate.”
~ Kabira Rinat Sharabi, Midburn CEO
AfrikaBurn Rises 6,000 Strong
“We proceeded with cautious optimism building Tankwa Town in 2022, rising for the inaugural event on Quaggafontein. The first on-site operations meeting was an emotional homecoming and the camaraderie was palpable as our community, and our grit and grace carried us through.”
~ Lorraine Tanner, Executive Director – Development, AfrikaBurn
-f.12-
“Spirit flies abroad, and soul remains at home.”
~ JEAN COCTEAU
“Some Regional Events or experiences are quite small and intimate and really beautiful. I think the smallest Regional Event is an event in Fargo, North Dakota called Melting Man. You can imagine what that might be like with a small 20-person group getting together to have this experience.”
~ Iris Yee, “Burning Man is not a Place,” Burning Man Live Episode 46 (Burning since 2008)
Burning Man Around the World
Over 25 years the Regional Network has grown organically from three regions — Austin, Texas, the North Bay of San Francisco, and the entire country of Canada — to more than 232 Regional Contacts in 34 countries and the virtual world. In a typical year, community members lead and co-create more than 100 official Regional Events, and host thousands of community gatherings.
Regional Events are participatory, not-for-profit gatherings organized by communities in alignment with Burning Man’s 10 Principles; each event adheres to guidelines established by Burning Man Project to ensure they are consistent with community values.
In 2022 we welcomed three new Official Regional Events:
- ReIginition, an outdoor precompression event in Seattle
- Melburn Wonderland, Australia’s third official Regional
- ArtBaer, a Regional Event in Germany
Regional Burning Man Events in 2022
- 73 in-person
- 4 online
24 Regional Events Outside the U.S. Across 17 Countries
- Argentina
- Australia
- Austria
- Canada (4)
- China
- Denmark
- France
- Germany
- Israel
- Japan
- Lithuania (2)
- Netherlands (2)
- Romania
- Russia
- South Africa
- Spain
- United Kingdom (3)
49 Regional Events in the U.S. Across 27 States:
- Arizona (3)
- California (4)
- Colorado (4)
- Connecticut
- Florida (3)
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kansas (2)
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Missouri (3)
- Nevada (2)
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York (4)
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oregon (2)
- Pennsylvania (2)
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Washington (3)
- West Virginia (2)
Four Official Virtual Regional Events
Since 2020 and 2021, tens of thousands of Burners have frolicked in BRCvr, Sparkleverse, Build-A-Burn, Burn2 and other virtual communities. Burning Man in virtual space is not new; people have been burning a Man in Second Life since 2003. In 2010 the Burn2 Second Life community became the first official virtual Burning Man Regional. Burn2 continues to thrive today; in 2022 there were four official Regional Events on their virtual playa.
