Have you ever wondered how many people it takes to successfully run Kiwiburn? A recent survey of our Operational Team Leads showed that over 300 volunteers make Kiwiburn run. That’s one person for every five participants volunteering in some capacity; from doing just one several-hour shift at Greeters, Gate, Depot, or Black Sheep Rangers, to putting in hundreds of hours running a department and overseeing the whole operation.
Two of our most senior and long-serving volunteers, Karl Matthews and Poppy, are both taking a big step back from Kiwiburn next year. Both have been coming to Kiwiburn since 2007, helping run a Theme Camp with friends, before moving into the organisational side of Kiwiburn as ExCom members and eventually holding senior operational positions across all facets of the festival. They’ve helped Kiwiburn grow as much as Kiwiburn has helped them grow, gaining invaluable practical and life skills.
Karl’s roles include running Gate, Treasurer, Site Manager, and for the last few years he has been the Build Liaison and co-Site Operations Manager. Poppy has been the MPW Manager for many years now, overseen the running of the crew kitchen, and been Site Manager lead and co-Site Operations Manager. Their combined knowledge is vast and together they have put thousands of hours into the administrative and operational functioning of Kiwiburn. We cannot thank them enough for their service and dedication.
And thank you to all our volunteers who work so hard all year round. Kiwiburn is 100% volunteer run. With over 40% growth in 2016, Kiwiburn is morphing into its next form. It will be both challenging and rewarding and it’s a great opportunity for YOU to be part of the change. WE NEED YOU!
What is volunteering really like?
Hana Tuwhare shares with us her experiences of volunteering at Kiwiburn and other burns arund the world. Read her story here.
The challenge:
Almost all of the top Operations positions need to be filled to run the 2017 event. We need skilled and enthusiastic Burners to step up and volunteer for these positions within the next few months, or Kiwiburn may not happen. If you love Kiwiburn, if you’ve been around for one year or ten years and are wondering how you could be of service to your community, this is your chance.
The rewards:
As well as seeing people enjoy the festival you helped create, you will work with an amazing group of people in our community from all over New Zealand; learn a wide range of skills which you can apply to life in the default world; and gain insight and experience volunteering on a unique (non-commercial) festival, working alongside our long-standing volunteers.
The following Kiwiburn Operations positions are open – full role descriptions are here – ideally also with a 2IC for every position (except where noted). Keep in mind some (if not all) of these jobs could be shared between more than one person if people are keen but don’t want to take it all on themselves.
Site Operations Manager
Site Manager Team Lead
Site Managers (at least 4, preferably 6-8)
Site Office Manager
Purchasing Officer (on site)
Ministry of Public Works (MPW) Lead
Construction Lead
Kiwiburn needs help on the Administrative side of things too; year-round positions often requiring a different kind of skillset from the operational side of things. With our existing coordinators, we envisage forming a Volunteer department of a group of folks who can collate, organise, and manage the large number of volunteers required to run Kiwiburn, specifically a Volunteer administrator and Volunteer Engagement Liaison.
We will also be seeking expressions of interest for people to join the ExCom with a view to taking officer roles in the future, particularly the Chair, and Treasurer which may be coming up in a year or so. The ExCom are the stewards of Kiwiburn, its governing body, ensuring that the structure is in place for the running of a safe festival.
Ready to step up? If you are keen on any of these roles, please fill out the form on the Volunteer Opportunities page, telling us a little about yourself and what skills you’ll bring to the role(s).
The ExCom will decide by the AGM in August whether Kiwiburn 2017 will happen or not. We really want the Robots to be coming, and we hope they are friendly!
It’s your event; your community; you decide what will happen.
