No More Playa Action For Zendo Project

After 14 years of providing psychedelic care and emotional support to the Burning Man community, 2026 brings about a significant change. Zendo Project will not be providing peer support services at Burning Man this summer. It is a hard thing to say, and we don’t say it lightly.

Black Rock City has been at the heart of our community and project – it’s where Zendo Project first opened its doors in 2012, born as a gift to the playa from the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). It’s where Zendo volunteers fell in love with this type of work and had their own life-changing experiences. It’s where we first discovered the power of Zendo’s Four Principles of Care. This project would not exist without Burning Man, and Black Rock City will always be our home.

Zendo Project became an independent nonprofit in 2023 and since then, we’ve been working to find a financially sustainable way to show up on the playa. Last year, for the first time, we received dedicated funding from Burning Man Project – a milestone made possible by generous donors in the Burner community. This year, that support isn’t available, and the scale of covering costs for Burning Man is simply too big for us to absorb on our own.

We’re deeply grateful to the Black Rock Rangers for years of partnership and fierce advocacy, and to everyone who has made Zendo Project’s mission possible out in the dust. Zendo is exploring new approaches to becoming a sustainable presence at Burning Man in 2027 and into the future.

Meanwhile, the ethos of Burning Man has always been to bring what the playa teaches us out into the world, where these skills and care are needed more than ever. Here’s how we’re doing that this summer:

Colorado Embedded Care Pilot: 15 nights of embedded peer support services across the state, with Zendo Lab gathering real-world data on what care looks like working alongside medical teams at nightlife events. This is how we prove the model and bring effective support to venues and communities where it has never existed before.

Education in the World: Our Zendo Sitting and Integration Training (SIT) and Emergency Psychological Response (EPR) courses are reaching practitioners and community members across the country, giving people tools for supporting non-ordinary states wherever they arise. Check out our free Mini Course and Psychedelic Journey Companion Guide.

Studying What Works: Through Zendo Lab, we’re publishing research on peer support outcomes, partnering with institutions to understand what our training and events actually accomplish, and helping define best practices for the field.

Want to be part of what’s growing? Support Zendo’s mission to bring peer-based care to more people and places. Whether you’re moved by what Zendo has built at Burning Man or excited about where we’re headed – donate today.