SOAK Leads Applications

The Design Lead works within the Swag department to design the official event art inspired by the theme. They also design the Survival Guide, physical maps, vehicle passes, Safety Plan, laminates, wristbands, What Where When, and Volunteer/Participant Waivers.

Knowledge, skills and abilities
-Basic skills in Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Acrobat.
-Strong attention to detail is a must.
-Proficiency in Google Suite (or ability to learn Google Docs, Sheets, etc).

Time Commitment
Feb: Leads retreat and event cycle kick-off and up to 3 hours per week
March-April: Up to 10 hours per week
May: Up to 15 hours per week
On-site: On shift or on call during the hours of dept operations
June: After Burn Report

SOAK Train Leads enhance the overall mobility and accessibility at SOAK.

They play a pivotal role in connecting various areas of the event and ensuring that transportation is not only efficient and accessible, but also aligns with the artistic and communal spirit of SOAK.

Responsibilities include:

• Decorating Carts in line with the event's theme.

• Coordinating volunteer drivers for the Carts.

• Driving the Carts during the event to facilitate participant movement.

• Managing fuel and other logistical aspects of the Carts.

• Be available on radio during the event.

• Train and manage SOAK Train volunteers.

• Establish and document common procedures.

Time Commitment:

The SOAK Train role will require less time pre-event than other departments, however you will need to coordinate closely with your Director during this time.

• Jan- May: attend bi-weekly meetings

• Pre-event: onsite by Tuesday

• Event weekend: attend morning staff meetings.

• GTFO: onsite until Monday evening, when participants have left.

• Post-event: After Burn Report

Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

Pyro are the specialists who manage the technical aspects of the igniting of the effigy. You will work closely with MBS and Fire Safety Leads to create a safe and spectacular display.

Responsibilities include:

• Working closely with Fire Safety, MBS, Rangers, and any other relevant departments to ensure safety and the right sequence of events leading up to the burn.

• Be available on radio during burn days.

• Train and manage Pyro volunteers.

• Establish and document common procedures.

Requirements:

• Previous leadership experience with burn team for Burnable Sculptures or equivalent work related experience.

• Preferred: Volunteered with SOAK Pyro team, SOAK's Fire department or other directly related projects at other Regionals in the past.

• Preferred: Volunteered with MBS in the past

Time Commitment:

The Pyro role will require less time pre-event than other departments, however you will need to coordinate closely with Fire Safety and MBS Leads during this time.

Jan- May: attend bi-weekly meetings

Pre-event: onsite by Tuesday

Event weekend: attend morning staff meetings.

GTFO: onsite until Sunday evening, or post-Temple burn (whichever occurs first)

Post-event: After Burn Report

Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

Do you like knowing all the things that are going on? Do you like working in a team of dedicated humans who like to think about the details?

A Camp Placement Lead’s primary focus is on reviewing and placing camps and art at SOAK. They work in collaboration with the other Placement Leads to map and flag the event before artists and camps arrive along with managing resources to help SOAK support the theme camps and artists.

Responsibilities:
A list of the key, though not exhaustive, responsibilities for a Camp Placement Lead
- Revise and update the Camp Placement Application form each year with the other Placement Leads to capture all needed information between the Art Application form and the Camp Placement Application form.
- Help create policies, criteria, and general communication to the camps and artists.
- Read and review all Camp Placement Applications for mapping and standing considerations
- Respond to emails from camps.
- Allocate resources to Camps and Artists like tickets and early entry passes
- Participate in Mapping the event with other Placement Leads during one full weekend.
- Receive feedback from camps and work with the team to adjust the map.
- Flag and meet camps on site to show them their placed location.
- Be available and “on comms” throughout the event weekend to troubleshoot with camps and other department leads.
- Collaborate with other Placement Leads on the Placement Afterburn report post-event.
- Respond to requests, complaints and onsite conflicts during event in collaboration with other department leads.

Knowledge, skills and abilities:
- Proficiency with some kind of mapping software (Illustrator works but we are open to other options), Google Suite or Microsoft Office, including Google Sheets or Excel and Google Docs or Word.
- Likes to problem-solve and has the ability to remain calm and balanced in stressful situations.
- Excellent communication skills, written and oral.
- Spatial awareness
- Team player
- Detail-oriented

Time commitment
- November-January: 5-10 hours a week
- February-May: 10-15 hours a week (not including mapping weekend and symposium)
- Pre-Event: On site by Monday
- Event Weekend: Help campers and artists find their place, all staff meetings and as needed
- Post-Event: AfterBurn Report, Placement debrief, and camp standing.

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

Pathlighter volunteers design, place and maintain consistent lighting along pathways and roadways for event goers to traverse the property safely.

The Pathlighter Leads manage inventory and lighting on site, design and create lanterns, coordinate volunteers, and produce a budget. They work with other departments such as Placement, DPW and Temple crew to facilitate the best options for lighting at the event.

Responsibilities include:
- Building, placing and maintaining lighting infrastructure.
- Attending work parties.
- Coordinating volunteers.
- Being available for short shifts during the event.
- Helping break down and pack materials post event.
- Providing After Burn report and debrief.

Time Commitment
- Jan- May: attend meetings
- Pre-event: on site by Wednesday
- Event weekend: attend staff meetings & as needed
- Post-event: Afterburrn report & debrief

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

The Media Department manages all public messaging related to SOAK and helps keep the community informed about event-related topics.

Responsibilities:

• Coordinate with Department Leads and Production team to organize relevant information into newsletters and social media posts

• Write copy and format newsletters and social media posts

• Post to Facebook and other social media platforms

• Keep the soakpdx.com website up-to-date with relevant information and consistent formatting

• Work directly with leads in need of assistance with messaging copy and strategy

• Examine and adjust all public facing forms created by Leadership, looking for consistent, clear language and formatting

• Update forms and the website as information changes, in a timely manner. Links and dates are especially important.

• Monitor Facebook DM’s and forward incoming questions from website to Producers or relevant Departments

Knowledge, skills and abilities:

• Proficient writing and communication skills

• Understanding of social media such as Facebook and Instagram

• Ability to engage online in a helpful and constructive manner

• Proficient using Squarespace (or have the desire to learn)

• Proficient using Mailchimp (or have the desire to learn)

• Access to a computer and internet a must

Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

The Major Burnable Sculpture (MBS) Department builds the main burnable sculpture for the event (which typically burns on Saturday), sets-up at the event site, and performs burn site cleanup.

Responsibilities:
- Attend SOAK Leads meetings, about twice a month
- Procure all materials and tools needed for the project
- Ask the community for art ideas, select a project, and work with the selected artist to build it.
- Create a budget for the project
- Manage volunteers
- Recruit people with the skills needed for the different aspects of the project (building, lighting, painting, etc.)
- Support less experienced volunteers gain the skills needed to keep volunteering
- Communicate weekly in person and email
- Track volunteer hours (spreadsheet and/or Volcor)
- Schedule shifts for building dates (on and off site)
- Provide refreshments on and off site
- Build the project within the weeks before SOAK
-Disassemble the project to transport and reassemble/finish it on site.
- Coordinate the transportation of the project from the building site to the event
- Communicate with folks in the pyrotechnics crew to plan the burn
- On burn day, assist the pyro crew and rangers with the perimeter and burn preparation
- The day after the burn, pick up any unburned materials (metal, nails, etc.), rototill the burn scar, reseed with grass, and water it (coordinate with fire truck)
- Provide an After Burn Report
- Work closely with DPW, Fire Safety, Rangers, and Fire Conclave departments

Time Commitment:
Pre-event:
- Twice a month leads meetings (1 hour/meeting)
- Weekly build events (~5 hours/week)
- Weekly preparation and communication for build events (~2 hours/week)
- Arrive on site as early as possible (ideally Tuesday of the event week)
During the event:
- Attend daily staff meetings (may alternate with co-leads)
- Be on-duty daily until the morning after the burn (~8 hours/day)
Post-event:
- Afterburn Report & debrief (~4 hours)

Requirements:
Must have access to the internet and transportation to building sites.
Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

Leave No Trace Department is one of the most important departments that's part of SOAK. LNT Lead’s main focus is to ensure the SOAK site is fully restored back to how we found it or better.

Responsibilities
- Attend SOAK meetings, manage emails & communications
- Establish department budget
- Coordinate with DPW to ensure proper equipment arrives on site and returns to the barn
- Recruit, manage, and track hours for all LNT volunteers
- Coordinate with MBS department to ensure proper restoration of burn sites
- Educate/communicate LNT ethos with team, camps, & attendees
- Lead the post-event LNT sweep of property
- Track MOOP distribution in relation to theme camps & communication with Placement team
- Coordinate post-event Monday night volunteer dinner
- Coordinate removal of MOOP, lost & found belongings back to the Burner Barn
- Write the After Burn Report.

Time Expectations
- January-May: attend soak meetings, hire, train, and schedule volunteers.
- On-Site: Attend daily Leads meetings. Most of the active work will happen Monday (last day of event) & Tuesday (post event).

The Inclusion department’s mission is to create, foster and actualize equity, inclusion, and diversity practices within the SOAK organization and event itself.

This is a first year department that was a subcommittee in the 2023 event cycle.

Responsibilities include:

• Identifying areas of improvement within the SOAK organization (including leadership, departments, culture etc) and implementing changes with the support of leadership

• Identifying areas of improvement within the SOAK event (including camps, services, etc) and implementing changes with the support of leadership

• Management of a pool of directed SOAK tickets

• Community outreach and engagement

• Continued work on SOAK DEI statement land acknowledgement

Knowledge, skills and abilities:

• Excellent communication skills both written and verbal

• Ability to work within a diverse team

• Lived experience of cultural affinity is highly valued

• Passion for developing vision and strategy of a new department

Time Commitment:

• 3-5 hours per week-this is a new department so can/may fluctuate and increase leading up to event in May

• Jan- May: attend bi-weekly Leads meetings

• Event weekend: attend staff meetings and fulfill any onsite duties.

• Post-event: After Burn Report & debrief

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

As a new co-lead for Ice at Soak your role will be to shadow long-time lead Arizona and learn as much as you can about running Ice.

Learn where the ice comes from, where it goes to, and everything in between. You will learn logistics, leadership, inter-department coordination, volunteer management, and more! Ideally you will have had cash handling experience and you have a desire to learn more about what it means to be a department co-lead at SOAK.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Cash handling

• Customer service experience

REQUIREMENTS

• Willingness to learn

• Willingness to work shifts that aren't covered by volunteers

• Some knowledge or experience about SOAK

• Available to attend Leads meetings

TIME COMMITMENT

JANUARY

• Attendance at the Leads Retreat the last weekend of January 2024

FEBRUARY - 4-6 hours a month

• Attendance at the SOAK Town Hall (Date TBA)

• Meet with Ice Lead at least once for Q&A's and other knowledge transfer

MARCH - 2 - 4 hours per week

• Attendance at leads' meetings by zoom or in person

• Email communication with past volunteers

• Initial contact with our ice vendor

• Set up shifts in volunteer management software

• Infrastructure Hunting at the barn

APRIL - 6-10 hours per week

• New volunteer communication

• Attend leads meetings

• Check in with ice vendor

• Coordination with other departments and the Board through our producer

• Scheduling and re-scheduling shifts

MAY Pre-Event - 6-10 hours per week

• Ice book prep

• Attend leads meetings

• Check in with ice vendor

• Volunteer communication regarding shifts

• Coordinate EA for early volunteers

MAY during event

• Tuesday & Wednesday - 4-6 hours per day

• Thursday - Sunday - 6-8 hours per day

JUNE post event

• Meet to talk about how it went and how next year might go, idea sharing

• ABR's due

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

The Gate Department is responsible for processing credentialed participants in and out of the event site in a safe and professional manner.

Responsibilities include:

• Volunteer recruitment, scheduling, and supporting pre event and during event

• Creating and coordinating smooth transition from entrance of event to parking and back out again

• Developing processes and plans in fast paced team environment

• Communicating with production and volunteers to meet department goals

Knowledge, skills and abilities:

• Excellent verbal communication

• Ability to manage multiple demands

• Ability to work outside and be on your feet for long periods of time

• Facilitate teamwork and FUN!

Time Commitment:

3-5 hours per week

• Jan- May: attend bi-weekly meetings, respond to emails in timely manner, and be available for off cycle meetings as needed.

• Pre-event: on site by Tuesday to setup

• Event weekend: attend staff meetings and fulfill onsite duties.

• Post-event: After Burn Report & debrief

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

The Fire Safety Team manages all aspects of the burns on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. They also handle hazardous material spills, tree or structure collapses, unintended fires, and any occasion where a coordinated medical/fire response is required.

Responsibilities
- Ensuring the controlled burns happen in a safe manner, including running or delegating incident command for the controlled burns.
- Inspect fire equipment and art on-site
- Creating a department budget.
- Coordinating Fire Safety volunteers
- Working closely with medical, EMS and local fire departments pre-event and on-site.
- Working closely with Placement leads regarding fire art.
- Being familiar with and even contributing to the Event Safety Plan.
- Conducting community fire safety trainings pre-event.
- Communicating to the community about safety requirements and best practices.

Knowledge, skills and abilities
- Familiarity with general the safety procedures of propane, generators, fire arts etc.
- Great communication skills and ability to interface with participants and fellow Leads in a constructive manner.
- Ability to respond in stressful situations.
- Some knowledge and experience in ICS leadership preferable but not required.
- Previous experience managing controlled burns is a plus.
- Previous experience with incident command is a plus.

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

Department of Public Works (DPW) is responsible for the setup of SOAK’s infrastructure on-site, pre-build of support items, and transportation of all requested SOAK departments inventory to and from the site. DPW is seeking 1-3 leads for these roles.

Responsibilities:
- Communicate weekly in person and by email
- Assist with managing department volunteers, including:
- Recruit new volunteers with the skills needed for department tasks
- Support less experienced volunteers in gaining the skills necessary to keep volunteering
- Runs DPW crew for onsite build OR strike
- Attend department work parties (optional)
- Contribute to department After Burn Report

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
- Ability to drive a 24’ Box truck (preferred)
- Knowledge of safe operations of shop tools
- Analytical problem solving skills
- Experience using a share drive (Google Suite; doc, sheets, etc)
- Tetris packing skills
- Organized and timely

Requirements:
- Must have access to the internet and transportation to Burner Barn.
- Must be able to attend SOAK with a mandatory commitment to either early arrival or staying after event close
- Must be familiar with department tasks and be able to delegate effectively

Perks
- Free DPW department shirt/tank for year worked
- Free SOAK Lead’s hoodie (exclusive to Lead’s team)
- Free DPW Patch & Stickers
- Guaranteed 16 hours for volunteer ticket

Time Commitment:
Build Lead
Pre-Event
- 3 work party (shared attendance with other leads)
- Up to 4 hours of DPW planning meetings
- Truck load day 4 hours
During the Event
- Early access day Tuesday with a 4 hour work day
- 8 hour day of site build Wednesday
Post Event
- Contribute to After Burn Report

Strike Lead
Pre-Event
- 3 work party (shared attendance with other leads)
- Up to 4 hours of DPW planning meetings
During the Event
- Strike day 8 hours
- Drive truck back Tuesday (shared with other leads)
Post Event
- Day after the truck returns 4-6 hours of truck unload and Burner Barn restore
- Up to 3 hours of DPW post meetings
- Contribute to After Burn Report

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

The Fire Conclave team provides space for fire artists to share their spinning with the community, as well as a stage for an all inclusive performance for the community.

The team keeps track of fire dancers who are on site, explains the guidelines for the ability to have fire dancing to the SOAK fire community & provides safety guidelines for fire dancing on site.

We also facilitate the fire performance by working with Fire Performer Safeties, bringing the necessary gear to the site, holding a meeting on site to explain the show and how it works and works with the Fire Safety team for the pre burn show.

Leader Role Definition for Fire Conclave:

• Set up Fire Conclave sign up & Fire Conclave Safety volunteer forms

• Send out welcome letters and instructions to all fire participants

• Work with FIre Safety team planning for Conclave during the burn

• Hold on site meeting & Fire Safety Volunteer training for Pre burn Show

• Track & maintain budget for onsite fuel and safety gear

• Ensure necessary gear is maintained and makes it onsite

• Tracks Hours for Fire Conclave Safety volunteers

• Maintain Fire Conclave Email and answers participant questions, as well as communicated with Fire Safety and Producers with large fire requests and camp fire circle requests

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

The Census Leads sample attendees as they enter the event and use that data to learn about our community.

Responsibilities

• Manage and organize large sets of data

• Coordinate volunteers

• Coordinate with other relevant departments like Gate and Parking

Knowledge, skills and abilities

• Strong communication skills

• Attention to detail

• Coding and data analysis skills using open source software like Python or R

Time Commitment

• Feb: Leads retreat and event cycle kick-off and up to 3 hours per week

• March-April: Up to 10 hours per week

• May: Up to 15 hours per week

• On-site: On shift or on call during the hours of department operations

• June: After Burn Report and data cleaning and analysis

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.

Talented And Gifted (Provisions) managed the process for gifting funds to applicants bringing art and camp activities to SOAK.

Responsibilities include:

• Running the Peer Review Process

• Advertising Peer Review and recruiting members

• Drafting and circulating the provisions applications

• Light computer work during TAG meetings like sharing documents, drafting messaging, looking at spreadsheets

• Drafting and sending contracts and awards letters via Docusign and Google MailMerge

• Attending meetings with the SOAK Production teams

• Attending meetings during SOAK

• Working with applicants and fellow event workers who may be Spicy at times

• Honoring the general reasoning of our grant guidelines

• Visioning what SOAK could look like in 5 years, 10 years etc and how Provisions can help

Knowledge, skills and abilities:

• Must love Art and Philosophy or you will be a sad potato

• Must have strong computer skills, including Google Drive and Zoom

• Strong preference for people who have volunteered with TAG previously

• Strong preference for those skilled with mail merge and docusign

Time Commitment:

• February: 3-10 hours a week

• March-April 5-20 hours a week (not including Peer Review)

• May 3-5 hours a week

• Event weekend: attend staff meetings as needed. This role will require less time during the event than other departments as the majority of work peaks March-April.

• Post-event: After Burn Report & debrief

Must have access to the internet. Must be in good standing with PNW and have not been dismissed or disqualified from volunteer service at a past Regional Event or Burning Man.