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Inside GP&E

Gate, Perimeter & Exodus comprises more than 28 sub-departments/teams, and each of those may contain more operational groups or supporting functions. Together, GP&E is responsible for enforcing some of the permit stipulations that makes Black Rock City possible and legal.
The permit is issued each year by the United States Bureau of Land Management (BLM), allowing the Burning Man organisation to use federally controlled US land as the site for the event. GP&E is an important part of enforcing the permit stipulations, by ensuring every Participant is entitled to attend.
This whole “enforcing the permit stipulations” thing sounds boring on paper, but you may have noticed that the teams look like they are having an amazing time together. For many of us, the friends we’ve made here – and our desire to have more adventures together – is why we return to Burning Man and contribute to this machine each year.

What We Do

GP&E is one of the first teams to arrive at the event, and one of the last to leave. Operations begin in early August, running 24 hours a day until mid-September. GP&E runs 24 hours a day for that entire period.
Our primary function is to regulate the flow of all traffic in and out of Black Rock City. The Gate (and the many associated sub-departments) establishes that anyone entering the city has a valid ticket or credential, while the Perimeter team patrols the closure zone to help anyone who may have wandered out, or intercept those actively trying to sneak in. Exodus is opening-day in reverse, regulating the mass egress of 70,000+ Participants trying to leave the city in the same 32 hour period.
In support of these functions, all of our sub-departments have grown and refined their processes, resulting in us becoming one of the most intricate and interwoven departments in Black Rock City. The members of GP&E talk to and process 99% of the people In Black Rock City. We meet and process 70,000+ Participants, Staff, Vendors, and other cooperators.

We believe that your work matters and you may already have a bigger connection to BRC than you know.