Updated 2.2.2003

1. What is a Prehistoric Fertility Goddess?

Many statues have been discovered over the years. The one we found inspirational is at:

http://witcombe.sbc.edu/willendorf/willendorfdiscovery.html

2. Is this an all female celebration? Is it open to men?

The Burning Woman is a symbol of fertility and nurturing power of the Earth. She does not reflect the gender of the event's participants, it's organizers, or her builders. In fact, the majority of the organizers are chromosomally unbalanced.

3. How much does it cost to attend?

We started under the presumption that this would be a free event, and that is still our intent. However, our respect and love of the land insists that we insure all participants attend to sanitation. In lieu of charging money to pay for central sanitation, we have chosen to make it the responsibility of each group. In a way, a group's ticket to this event is a realistic sanitation plan.

4. What do you mean “Sanitation”?

“Sanitation” directly translates to “Human Waste” of all kinds. We naturally assume that all campers will abide by the regulations governing public lands. Everything you bring out with you must go back out with you. This includes cigarette butts, food packaging and the likes. Of greater concern is direct biological human waste. Our camping will be done in the California desert. Due to the extreme arid nature of the environment, human biological waste takes an extraordinary long time to decompose. We believe that our passing through this beautiful setting should leave absolutely no impact on the environment. Thus we ask that each group provide their own vessel for removing all biological waste. i.e. portable toilets or field toilets are the price of admission.

5. My group is flying in. Portable toilets don’t fit in the overhead luggage compartment on our flight.

Worry not. We are here to help and can assist your group with sanitation. Send an email our way and we will be happy to put you in touch with local service providers that can service the task at hand. We will also provide information on field toilets, an inexpensive way of taking all your waste home with you.

6. Who is invited?

We welcome everyone that has a respect for the land, an interest in celebrating the Equinox, and a love of fire.

7. Is this a round-the-clock-72-hour-blasting-techno-music-dance-your-booty-off desert party?

Absolutely Not! Though we will have amplified sound, it will be used as a small part of the social experience. Noise pollution is noise pollution, be it from a pack of off road motorcycles buzzing all day or your favorite DJ laying down that rare wax. We respect very much the artistic expression of music however we ask that all campers keep an awareness of the gatherings diversity and the posted “quiet times” schedule.

If you are looking for an event more focused on music than ours, our dear friends at the XaraProject are hosting an Equinox event at the beautiful Madre Grande Monastery. Visit http://www.xaraproject.org for more information.

8. I have a Turbo BFS-9000 Mega 50,000 Watt sound system and a list of top DJs just “dying” to spin.

No Thanks. We would love to have your contact information in case we throw that kind of event, however Burning Woman is not the appropriate venue for this. Sound systems at Burning Woman are limited to 1000 watts in size and have definite time restrictions.

9. What if I don’t belong to a group?

We have a special pit, filled with scorpions…

Actually, it’s just easier to attend to sanitation as a group, if you deal with it yourself (i.e. an RV or field toilet), then, you’re done. If you need help, we’ll be glad to hook you up with others in similar situations.

10. Where will it be held?

There are several locations that would serve our needs; we have chosen to decide between them when the weather conditions more closely approximate the event.

11. Are camps organized?

Individual camps may have organization and agenda, but since there’s plenty of room, we saw no need to restrict camp placement. We're trying to keep the organization of this function as low-key and organic in its' formation as possible. If your group is doing a performance or needs assistance with sound or stage space, please contact us. We are coordinating the event to provide as much interactivity and opportunity for everyone to participate.

12. How can I participate?

The Burning Woman festival is a participatory event. We encourage everyone to learn from and share themselves with the community, be it through spirituality, art, workshops, and other creative or holistic means.

In addition to sharing in each other, we are celebrating Mother Nature and her many manifestations across cultures, civilizations and the ages. We ask that everyone bring with them a willingness to preserve her infinite beauty and a desire to make her even more beautiful. Caring for our mother and participating in the clean-up will be an integral part of our shared experience.

We would like to invite our guests to register their activities and assist us in the creation of a magical celebration. Please contact us via email at event@burningwoman.org with the details.

13. Is the Event Dog-Friendly?

We love dogs of all shapes and sizes. For many of us they are full-fledged family members. Unfortunately, Burning Woman is not held in an environment that allows off leash pets. If you choose to bring your dog or any other animal to Burning Woman, we will ask that you abide by Federal and State laws regulating such activities. In most locations this means that your pet will have to be leashed at all times. We also have a house rule for pet owners: “Anything your pet does to others or the environment, all participants have the obligation to do to you”. It's important to know that desert strays are regularly devoured by coyotes and other predators.

14. Our Policy on Drugs

We do not endorse or encourage the use of any illegal substance. We will be camping on public lands and will be held accountable to all Federal, State and Local laws.

We gladly tolerate the use of caffeine, and make exception for the use of nicotine. As for alcohol, we discourage its use, despite its legality. Aside form the health risk of dehydration and the hazard of glass bottles, there may be families and minors at this festival and out of control use of alcohol could endanger the land, the art or the participants.

As for controlled substances, anyone found to be “out of control”, particularly in such a way that could endanger the celebration or our guests, will be asked to leave. Anyone found openly soliciting or distributing contraband drugs will become the guests of the local law enforcement agency for at least the remainder of the weekend. Bear in mind that the choices you make do affect the community as a whole and can equally add or detract from the experience for everyone.