Rio hosted the 26th International AIDS Conference in the year the funding collapsed, and the headlines went where you would expect. But away from the plenaries, in the Global Village, a different response was under way. A sculpture you are invited to lift, a runway built out of lab coats, artists making the case in powerful and personal ways. In a year when the money has gone, visibility is the resource this movement still controls.

A gallery in the middle of Athens provides art classes for refugees. Six families sit down in front of blank canvases, most of them have never painted before. A woman hands them acrylics and says: paint whatever you want.

There is no subject, no suggestions and no correction to avoid influencing what they paint. Which matters more than it sounds, for a child who has had every decision made for them since they left home.

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.

Helping build temporary cities is a formative experience. Participating in Burning Man can help shape “changemakers,” people who take positive action out in the world. At the same time, it allows those already working in social impact to experiment and rethink how they work.

Meet three changemakers whose experiences carried outward in unexpected ways. Each show how experimentation can translate into meaningful change — both in their own lives and in their broader communities. Sometimes all it takes is stepping away from the noise of the outside world to reconnect with a sense of purpose.

Peronia Adolescente, an NGO running a youth cultural center in the red zone of Guatemala City. 

The organization helps youth, especially young girls, in their transition from teenager to adulthood when they are particularly vulnerable to cycles of violence, and a potential life on the streets. Once a year, their street festival brings vibrancy to the community – a testament of the power of connecting through art.

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.  

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.