Update on Firefly 2026 and Firefly Arts Collective

Dear Fireflies,

The Festival Committee (FestComm), the volunteer committee that is responsible for the operation, administration, infrastructure, and services (etc.) provided by Firefly Arts Collective around the main Firefly event, and representatives of the FAC board, have met to discuss our respective capacity and determine next steps for Firefly in 2026 and beyond.

We took time to consider both the resources available to us in terms of land and the volunteer labor of people who dedicate countless hours of work towards making Firefly happen.

Our current plans:

• We will not be organizing a large-scale festival in 2026.
• We are organizing Firefly in 2027, and are already working on preparation for 2027.
• Firefly Arts Collective will be supporting a variety of different events and arts initiatives throughout 2026.
  • This includes supporting existing events, such as Safety Third, FIGMENT Boston, and Somerville Open Studios
  • The potential for small camping event(s)
• Firefly will be clarifying a code of conduct for volunteers, as well as a volunteer bill of rights to ensure a healthy working environment for all volunteers.

Q&A

What kinds of events is Firefly Arts Collective going to work on?

This depends on what people want to make happen! This currently includes Safety Third, FIGMENT Boston, and Somerville Open Studios. The limit is what people decide to do.

I have a great idea, can you help me?

The next steps for the Festival Committee and the Board are building out a process that will allow people to pitch events and request support. We are working on what that process will look like and what resources might be available and are excited to share with you when we have a process.  That will include how we will budget for events while preparing for Firefly 2027, setting up a submission process, and determining available infrastructure.

What about our vendors, contracts, other boring but important stuff?

FestComm is still meeting, working on Firefly 2027, and maintaining our existing vendor relationships. We hope to be able to provide art grants and support creative community building.

What about Luna Burn?

Luna Burn is an independent organization with its own corporate structure and volunteers and most importantly, its own goals. There are currently individuals who are excited about and involved with both organizations, the same way plenty of Burners are also part of other organizations including arts collectives, other burns, and community groups. That means people who want to work with Luna are already doing so. We all benefit from having twice as many awesome arts organizations. The most considerate way of supporting both organizations is to support both organizations, and other regional burns such as Wicked Burn, Granite Burn, Green Mountain Burn, etc. – plus other organizations that have a lot of overlap in the broader Burner community.

Best,
Oriana
Service core co-lead
on behalf of Festcomm