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Overview

BRC Census is a collaborative research project that started in 2002 with the goal of learning more about the participants who make up Black Rock City. We conduct a random sample of Burners entering the event, then collect online survey responses after the Burn. We combine these two data sources to get more statistically accurate data about the people who attended Burning Man that year.

Check out the Black Rock City Census Population Analysis to explore our data.

The Black Rock City Census Community on Hive is the best place to get all the information you need about who we are and what we do. You will also get the most up-to-date information about volunteering. On Hive, you can learn about how we gather and use data, see the various roles available for volunteers, meet the leadership team, get a calendar of our upcoming events, and complete the training you need to volunteer (this varies by role). If you do not yet have a Burner Profile, create one at profiles.burningman.org. Once that's done, return here and click this link to log in and view our Census community on Hive.

We're glad you're interested in the Black Rock City Census! Each year the Census gathers data that serves a vital purpose for Burning Man, in addition to just being interesting to know. It's an all-volunteer effort, and we would love to welcome you to our happy crew!

Are you ready to become a Census volunteer? Sign in above with your Burner Profile to view shift requirements and sign up. If you still have questions after reviewing our information, or if you would like to share your ideas about how to make an impact some other way, contact censusvolunteercoordinators@burningman.org and let us know how you want to participate! You're also more than welcome to meet and chat with the team on our Census Discord server.

Brief descriptions of the various volunteer roles are below. More information about roles and the training necessary for each can be found in our Census Community on Hive, linked above.

Random Samplers are stationed on Gate Road or BRC Airport as Burners arrive on playa. They collect basic demographic information from randomly selected participants. Good mobility, punctuality, enthusiasm, and communication skills are essential!

Traffic Tamers team up with Random Samplers on Gate Road to work the lanes of traffic ahead of the sampling point, getting participants excited about filling out the brief sampling form. Mobility, punctuality, and enthusiasm are all important traits!

Census Lab Hosts welcome visitors to the Census Lab. They answer participants' questions about the Census and invite them to participate in a variety of ways.

Pop-up Lab Hosts travel on our Census transport vehicle, the Data Beast, to a random location on playa to educate participants about Census and invite them to write in the Field Notes Journals.

Data Entry volunteers assist on playa, entering the data collected during random sampling shifts. This role calls for quick and accurate typists with good attention to detail!

Data Disseminators assist with on-playa outreach, distributing our Friday preliminary report out to major areas within BRC and encouraging participants to fill out the online survey at the end of the event. These volunteers must be friendly, mobile and clear communicators.

A core team of dedicated Census volunteers work year-round to help with data analysis and visualization, blog post writing and editing, pre-Burn planning, and other tasks.

If any of these sound like good fits for you or if you would like to make an impact some other way, contact censusvolunteercoordinators@burningman.org and let us know how you want to participate! We suggest reading through the Black Rock City Census Community on Hive first.