Origins
The heart of our Burn began beating in Nevada’s black rock desert at the very first Burning Man, nearly 40 years ago. Since then, the sparks have jumped across the world through hundreds of smaller annual events, all guided by the same 10 principles.
The Burner Philosophy
Burning Man co-founder Larry Harvey wrote the 10 Principles in 2004 as guidelines for the newly-formed Regional Network. They were crafted not as a dictate of how people should be and act, but as a reflection of the community’s ethos and culture as it had organically developed since the event’s inception.
Resonance is not a festival. It is an experiment in Community and part of a global cultural movement. We embrace the each of the 10 principles of Burning Man, striving to radically express ourselves engage meaningfully and responsibly with each other, our surroundings, and also within ourselves.
The 10 Principles of Burning Man
Radical Inclusion
Anyone may be a part of Burning. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community.
Gifting
The Burn is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.
Decommodification
In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.
Radical Self-Reliance
Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on their inner resources.
Radical Self-Expression
Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.
Communal Effort
Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.
Civic Responsibility
We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.
Leaving No Trace
Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wher- ever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.
Participation
Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.
Immediacy
Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.
The "Unwritten" Principle
Radical Consent
Consent is the overarching principle. We respect the autonomy of the individual’s whole self. The importance of consent is ubiquitous; Burners thrive when we hold Consent in a place of immutable priority within each of our other core values.
Why Volunteer?
Our organization is run entirely by unpaid volunteers who believe in the spirit and potential of Resonance. We have aCouncil that leads the planning and execution, made up of Council Chairs and the department leads for the various volunteer factions at the Burn. If you’re interested in becoming a department lead, please email wichitaburners@gmail.org.
Volunteer Departments
Cool Dept.
The coolest cats around. Also the only cats, since pets aren’t allowed at burns. We’re the ice source!
Doozers
We provide assistance to infrastructure, assist effigy/temple build teams maybe.. Generally bee-bop around and do stuff, ya know?
Earth Guardians
We valiantly and vigilantly safeguard the Earth by keeping our property clean and spreading the word that MOOP is poop!
Education
We help new burners understand the culture, and remind the veterans what it’s all about.
FAST
We know how to handle a fire, and how to stay cool if it gets really friggin hot. We make sure no one gets burned but the man.
The Scoopers
We’re the backbone to this whole operation! We oversee the transport of all of the things to and from the event.
Medics
You know that tent that you go to when you have a boo-boo? That’s us. That’s our tent.
Parking & Gate
If you can you check someone’s ID and give them a wristband, you’ll fit right in.
Placement & DMV
We figure out where all of the camps, infrastructure, and mutant vehicles are going to live for the weekend.
Rangers
We remain alert and sober while on-duty, and spend our time roaming, absorbing the atmosphere, and helping to resolve conflicts when necessary.
Temple & Effigy Build
We work with the community to design, create, and deliver a temple and effigy for everyone to watch burn!
Procession
We gather fire performers and their safety teams to create a space for art to be born ahead of our effigy burn.