Greetings lovely party humans!

If you have never been to a burn before and you are wondering what it’s all about, then you are looking in the right place!

What is BridgeCom?

BridgeCom is a small event (max 100 people) that is inspired by (but not affiliated to) Burning Man. This includes the culture, community and principles. It’s a community created by its members, to allow people to express their creativity, be authentic, expand their horizons, learn, share and enjoy spending time together. It's hard to explain why this community is important to people, read the principles and come along to BridgeCom to find out more.

What will happen?

BridgeCom is a small one day event, inspired by other UK burns like Burning Nest, MicroBurn and Decom, it is planned as a one off depending on how successful it is. It reflects a small slice of what you might expect at these other burns. That is, an outdoor event with a few different spaces.

On Friday there will be a team of us putting the event site together, if you would like to come and help you are welcome to stay over Friday night - camping is usually an integral part of a burn. Likewise there will be people camping on Saturday night, and hopefully hanging around Sunday morning to help pack down.

Saturday is the main event - we will to have a central space for various programmed events during the course of the day and night:

We will have a “teddy bears picnic” at lunchtime, when we can get to know a few new faces, and share some food - bring something to eat and drink yourself, and a bit to share as well and we can all get stuck in, BridgeCom is a strictly vegan event, it’s important that this is respected by all attendees 🙂

Later on there will be some lightning talks - short 5-10 minute talks on a wide variety of topics, these will be any topic that people would like to share on, with a variety of serious and fun topics (possibly even both at the same time!), if you have an idea for one you are very welcome to contact us at info@bridgecom.uk

There will be some performances early in the evening, if you know a song, piece of poetry or have a party trick you want to share then this is your opportunity. BridgeCom is what we make it, and that includes your contribution as well if you like!

At some point in the evening we will have a Barbecue, food for this will be bought for the event from donation proceeds, this is dependent on us having people to help out (and donations!), look at the volunteering spreadsheet for info on this and other ways to get involved - volunteering is also a great way to meet people.

The day will be interspersed with music, and later on into the evening, we will have a sound system and once it gets late we will switch to a silent disco - DJ slots are also available!

If we have a team to run it and ensure safety we will have an effigy burn after dark, there will be other spaces around the site to relax and explore, to get away from the crowd a bit if you need to, and probably other things not mentioned here!

What other things do I need to know?

The site will only be open from Friday lunchtime to Sunday lunchtime, no one will be allowed on site outside of these times.

There will be running water and portaloos on site.

The burner principle of decommodification means there will be no food vans, stalls selling things or any way to spend money once you have got your ticket. Part of the intention is that people only need to bring food for the picnic and breakfast on any morning they have stayed over, with the barbecue there is a meal provided to make it a bit easier. Obviously you will need to make arrangements for preparing any food you bring, this includes a cup and bowl/plate/cutlery if you intend to use it. Your own cup is a vital part of burner culture, and very helpful if you split a can with someone for example (and please do bring drinks to share 🙂)

If you are planning to stay over you will need to make sure you bring a tent and any other things you might need like a toothbrush or a change of clothes - radical self reliance is another principle. If you haven’t already please read our event Code of Conduct here!

How can I get involved?

Firstly, come along, Radical Self Expression, Immediacy and Participation are three Burner Principles you can embody just by showing up.

Gifting and Communal Effort are also Burner Principles, here are a few ways a first time burner can contribute:

Volunteer for some shifts, see the signup spreadsheet for more information, in particular roles like welcoming people at the entrance or being a ranger are a great way to meet a few new people but you can choose anything from the options.
Sign up to help build or strike the site, there will be lots of opportunities to make the event go smoothly either side of the Saturday.
Make some art - part of the fun of burns is the amazing creativity on show, made either before or during the event, contact us if you want to get involved in this info@bridgecom.uk
Add something to the program - either sign up for a lightning talk, cabaret performance or DJ set. Education and Radical Inclusion are burner principles too, and BridgeCom is a welcoming and safe space to get out there and share your love of… Well, whatever it is you want to share!

How does it work?

Our commitment to the Burner Principles, quite a bit of effort and lots of enthusiasm. BridgeCom was set up by a small group of Burners, no one is getting paid and we are all putting a contribution in to make the event happen. Every single person involved is doing it for free, sharing their time and skills. The more you put in, the more you get out 🙂
See you at BridgeCom!

Consent

The consent team are at Bridgecom for a brush-up on the values of consent. With a quick reminder that we practise the F.I.R.E.S. framework here:

Freely given

(Assumed or coerced consent is not consent)

Informed

(Consent requries knowing what's involved)

Reversible

(Can be withdrawn at any time)

Enthusiastic

(It must be a yes, not a maybe)

Specific

(Consent to one thing does not mean yes to another)

These are the principles of consent that guide us to engage in healthy conduct with our fellow party-goers. Uniting us in mutual appreciation and respect of the values and boundaries of others and ourselves. Be an ambassador for these values by looking out for one another. We can co-create the perfect event experience together, if we encourage each other to be perceptive of potential violations of boundaries that might be happening around us. If you know someone, or even if you don’t, we all get that vibe from people sometimes. And if you think they might be in trouble, we encourage you to check in with that person. Even if you’ve never met someone before, sometimes our senses can tell us something’s not right. If you’re not sure, it might be best to ask, or report your concerns to a ranger or site lead on shift, rather than ignore it entirely. We have no specific consent team this burn, but come find a lead or Greg (ask around if you don’t know him!) if you have any concerns and feel unsure how to respond. If we collaborate on co-creating a safe, consent-conscious space, we will give ourselves the freedom to indulge in radical expressionism. The more active bystanders we have, the safer and more harmonious this event will be, and nurtures a culture of peace and understanding for events to come.

Warmest thanks for reading,