Once Upon a Time in the Dust: Burning Man Around the World

Thirty-five years into the Burning Man movement, there are now over 100 annual events around the world. In 2018, aid worker Roxane Jessi set out to experience seven of these events firsthand, to get to the heart of a culture that is creating community in a disconnected world. Her journey spanned five continents, from Afrikaburn to Black Rock City, Blazing Swan to Burning Japan, Fuego Austral, Midburn and Nowhere. This is the story of that eye-opening odyssey, and the first book of its kind to provide a glimpse into Burning Man's eclectic Regional Network.

Roxane has spent her life exploring communities around the world, travelling to 60+ countries. Her career has been anything but conventional working on Congolese police reform, Iraq counterterrorism, and women's rights in Africa. Disillusioned with our disconnected societies, she had an aha moment during her first Burning Man sunrise. She became fascinated with how Burning Man manifests across cultures, eventually embarking on a yearlong round-the-world tour of seven Burns to find out. She worked throughout, alternating between suits and tutus while trying to stay sane. A lover of imaginary worlds as a child, she could be found writing poems in class hoping one day her words might inspire others. She typically spends a quarter of the burn rummaging for *insert missing object* in her tent/ bag and the rest lost on solo missions.