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Burrow Campout

Burrow Humanity Policy

Purpose
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As a community event, we are dedicated to creating an environment that is safe and respectful for every human who is in any way involved with or exposed to Burrow. This policy outlines Burrow expectations for participant behavior as well as the consequences for unacceptable behavior.

Guiding Principles
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Be excellent to each other.

This is a friends and family event. Most people know everyone within a degree or two of connection. As such, assume the best of intentions, and if something’s bothering you or you’re not having a great time, we wholeheartedly encourage being kind to each other and working things out by communicating directly. If you can’t do that, reach out to an SC, planner, Guardian of Humanity, or other kind soul to help you out. But in general, be excellent to each other and we’ll all have an excellent time! Bear in mind that if someone is demonstrating unacceptable behavior you don’t need to feel inclined to communicate directly with them, and you can follow our guidelines around what to do about unacceptable behavior.

Enthusiastic consent!

  1. “Yes” means “yes,” and everything else means “no.” There are lots of cues, verbal and nonverbal, that indicate someone is really not into what’s happening, such as staying quiet or needing to be convinced. Rather than relying on your interpretation of another person’s words and body language, resolve to get willful, explicit consent.

Pay attention to your partner(s) and keep checking in. Make sure their verbal and physical cues match. Consent should be mutual and continuous.

  1. A non-sober person cannot give consent.

Any kind of consent from someone who is not sober is NOT consent. Some people enjoy it, but you would have to know the person and their sexual intentions incredibly well to make that call.

This may seem strict and impractical, but people can be seriously hurt. It’s also the law. Better to abstain than to cause lasting damage.

If you want to get it on with someone whom you just met or don’t know well, not everyone is as alert or as sober as they may appear, so ask about their sobriety before engaging. Try to interact with each other when you’re both sober and get on the same page about how you want to be treated when either of you are not sober. That said, even if a sober person gives consent for their future, non-sober self, that’s still not a free pass.

Guardians of Humanity
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There will be guardians of humanity at the event, and possibly some who will not be attending but are available for assistance. Contact any/all of these people if you experience or perceive anything that challenges a safe and respectful environment at Burrow.

Note: When contacting anyone in this group about an incident, please indicate if there are any individuals on the committee whose involvement you’re not comfortable with. They will be excluded from any discussion of the incident.

  • These people have personal and professional experience handling harassment and discrimination.
  • The lead event organizers aren’t in this group in order to minimize conflicts of interest and to give the guardians the ability to give their undivided attention.
  • These people strive to be allies to all, and their identities collectively represent multiple diverse intersections.

Guardians of Humanity for 2026 will be announced closer to the event.

Unacceptable Behavior
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  • Harassment of any kind
  • Physical contact without consent
  • Abusive or derogatory comments
  • Intimidation
  • Discrimination
  • Persistent, unwelcome attention
  • Stalking
  • Following
  • Photography or recording of people without their consent

Consequences of Unacceptable Behavior
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Anyone violating these rules – in-person or online; before, during, or after the event; whether by the letter or by the spirit of the rules – may be disciplined or expelled from the event without warning or refund. Expelled individuals will be required to leave the event as soon as it is reasonably safe for them to do so. In the meantime, they may be monitored by someone designated by event staff.

“Intent is not impact”. People can have positive intentions and still have a real, harmful impact on others. As such, whether or not the behavior was deliberate will have little to no bearing on how we address the situation.

Aim to understand rather than defend and explain. If anyone tells you that you are behaving unacceptably, try to understand what they are saying, regardless of what you think of their experience or knowledge of the situation.

What to Do About Unacceptable Behavior
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Please communicate any questionable behavior to the Guardians Of Humanity or a Site Coordinator (event staff wearing orange vests) as soon as possible, whether you are subjected to it or witness it or simply have concerns. They will try to help you directly and manage the situation as necessary. We also have basic first aid on-site, and a Site Coordinator or other sober, responsible individual can drive you to the closest hospital.

If you feel comfortable doing so, we encourage you to directly try and help a situation. It’s an incredibly powerful thing to help another human, for both you and the humans you help. We are all part of the same community. It’s a good thing to check in on each other and ask if a person is feeling okay, whether or not you know them personally. It’s a potential red-flag if someone responds about another person’s well-being; try to get a clear response from each person about their own well-being.

If you want to report an incident after the event, please contact the Guardians Of Humanity.

External Resources
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