In 2009, Burning Man’s Communications Team engaged in an across-the-board effort to decentralize communications activities – a trend that will remain critical to the success of Burning Man’s ongoing growth and expansion.
From the Burning Blog, which evolved to include a wide variety of contributing authors from around our community, to the inclusion of new social networking efforts in the guise of a Facebook page and two Twitter feeds, more voices were added to our ever-growing chorus.
Similarly, the Burning Man Web Team decentralized its organizational structure, further empowering the many dedicated and talented volunteers that keep it running year round.
And as Burning Man’s Regional Network continued to grow (now numbering 100 regions around the world), taking us farther and more forcefully beyond the orange trash fence, Burning Man’s Regional Committee focused on restructuring the Network’s management structure to make it more self-sufficient, self-supporting, and collaboratively empowered as it expands.
The Print Production team held up its fine tradition of producing absolutely stellar printed materials, from the 2009 ticket to the event poster (a stunning piece by artists Cory and Katska), the Survival Guide, What Where When Guide, the annual wall calendar, and more.
Each year the Media Team must address the evolution of press and image usage in the digital age, whether it’s to accommodate a heretofore-unseen new media format or to reconcile the proliferation of personal photosharing websites with Burning Man’s longstanding policies governing image use. These issues are in a constant state of flux, and in 2009, many of them came to a head.