In 2025, we celebrate the 20-year anniversary of Burners Without Borders (BWB), which supports social and community development projects around the world. 

BWB has its roots in action, aligned with the Burning Man principles of participation and civic responsibility.

I delve into the Burners Without Borders (BWB) Colombia chapter and meet the faces behind its social initiatives, including a “Colombian Greta Thunberg,” and a tireless activist whose project has distributed a staggering 90,000 kg of food in the streets of Medellin.

These initiatives show us the way, a glimpse into what the BWB movement could achieve if we were all inspired to action.  

Eight thousand people in the Tankwa desert. A week spent exploring the art and the local culture: a Khoikhoi reed hut where the custodians of the land sit with whoever comes in, a temple built in memory of people who took their own lives, a healing ceremony.

And in a far corner of the playa, three letters carved in wood. HIV, written over with the things people still believe. The piece was built to burn, and as the outer structure collapsed it revealed the line underneath: Change the Name, End the Stigma.

Every year the Black Rock City Honoraria program supports artists in creating art for the annual Burning Man event in Black Rock City, one of the most awe-inspiring art experiences in the world. But beyond the Nevada playa, many established Regional events, regardless of size, offer art grants to participants.

Through these grants, event organizers in the Burning Man Regional Network do something that is missing in our default world, unleashing a creative flow that breathes cities of art to life. It allows incredible feats of architecture to be undertaken yearly by artists in some of the most unforgiving environments on earth.