An Updated Response to recent happenings and discussions within the nomad, vanlife, and overlanding community, including our Events, and what we believe is a path forward to creating a better and safer world.

Safety in our community is a vital and essential component of what we are working to build. As our events have grown in the past year, we have begun to put into place processes to encourage and protect the safety of our community, and the last 72 hours have been a test of our commitment to that end.

We have strived always to listen, to gather as much information as possible, to believe victims, and to protect. We are not judge nor jury, but that does not diminish our responsibility as space creators and space holders to protect those whom we consider to be our friends and family.

Nothing in the following statement should be construed as anything other than what our experience was as event organizers and members of the nomadic/overlanding/vanlife community. It is not an affirmation or a denial of the assertions of any parties involved, but a record of what occurred and what was shared with us.

We expect everyone to behave with grace and empathy, to listen and learn before speaking, and to hold people accountable once the facts are known.

Banning from our Events

Earlier this year when we first began to receive complaints from members in our community against individuals who attended or who might attend one of our events located at our official events or elsewhere, our first step was to put together a review committee of senior team members and to then consult with a sexual assault prevention and response expert to make sure we were asking the correct, kind, and empathetic questions of those who would come forward.

Brian of the Wuzabus is not a member of the TJOLT Event Leadership and has never been involved or consulted in any way on any ban.

When someone is banned it is because they are seen to be or to potentially be a threat to the safety and well-being of our community. Sexual assault (“SA”) related complaints have not been the only reason people have been banned, but heartbreakingly they have been the majority.

We *do not share* any information publicly about the who/what/where/why, and we only share the ban list with staff at events for the purpose of being aware in case those persons attempt to gain entry to the event, for the safety of the community, with permission of those who made the complaint.

This is not a perfect system, and we have done a poor job of sharing that we even have a system. More on how we are improving below.

The Specific Ban in Question and its Timeline

In July at our Holy Toledo! event we had discussions with an attendee due to the attendee’s noncompliance with the rules of the event where they were issued a clear warning with ramifications for non-compliance, including removal from the event and being banned from future participation. After the event’s end, it was reported to TJOLT leadership by sponsors, attendees, and volunteers that the attendee had failed to comply with the request of event staff, but as the event had ended and with no way (at that time) to contact them, we considered the matter closed.

Following the event, in early October while reviewing the incoming ticket purchases for Moonlanding, the TJOLT team saw that this previous attendee had purchased tickets for the event. We discussed this with the senior leadership team and it was decided the attendee should not be allowed to attend the event which they were informed of on October 7th at 11:23 PST.

We reserve the right to ban anyone from any event, for any reason, and to remove anyone from any event for any reason, and TJOLT needs to have the ability to moderate who attends for the wellbeing of all community members, our partners, and property owners.

In addition, following our decision to ban the prior attendee but before the Moonlanding event, additional information was brought to our attention from various third parties who are unrelated to the subject of this response letter that would also have been support for the TJOLT leadership’s decision.

We are not publicly sharing this information due to our policy regarding sharing the reasons for bans, but please know that we stand behind it and do not take these decisions lightly.

If you have concerns please reach out to us.

For clarity, Brian of the Wuzabus was never involved in any discussions, even tangentially, concerning the decision to ban this person, and up to that point we had no knowledge of any connection between Brian of the Wuzabus and the prior attendee other than that they had camped near each other near Bend, and that that she along with several others had used a promo code they received from him to get a discount on tickets.

Removal from the Attendee Chat Group

The prior attendee was removed from the Moonlanding Attendee chat group because the chat group is for Moonlanding attendees. Because their message was a request for help, members of our staff immediately reached out inquiring as to their safety, their needs, and whether or not they were alone.

They told us they were safe, that they were traveling with a group of friends and were in their friend’s vehicle, that they did not need any help, and that they still wanted to be allowed to come to the event because they were only 2.5 hours away.

Their request to attend the event was denied, and we reiterated with them that any attempt to enter the grounds would be considered by both the property owners and the event team as trespassing, and that the police would be notified.

Further, we are aware that our moderation of the various chat groups associated with our events has been deficient. We apologize, and we will be reviewing our policies and procedures in the coming weeks on how to better utilize these tools to communicate with attendees, and how to share those policies with the community.

Brian of the Wuzabus and His Removal from Moonlanding

Brian has been a valued member of The Journal of Lost Time team for some time, and he has been loyal, kind, and hardworking. Many of us consider him to be a friend and brother.

Yet while our love for our team, community, and chosen family does not require perfection, it does expect accountability when it is required.

During the Moonlanding event, particularly beginning on Saturday afternoon, various statements were brought to our attention about Brian through multiple sources, some conflicting and some confusing, and the entire TJOLT team met repeatedly to respond immediately to address the matter.

As *soon* as we thought it would be best for the safety and well-being of the community for Brian to leave, we made the decision to ask him to leave.

This was one of the most stressful few hours of our lives, and to say we are shook is an understatement.

Our decision is meant in no way as an imputation of guilt on the part of Brian or anyone who has been banned from our events, *or* this statement as a claim against or for the veracity of the claims of the prior event attendee.

This is also in no way meant to invalidate the experiences that others may have had, or their claims about Brian.

In no way do we believe we handled the matter perfectly. Our hearts are broken, and we will spend the rest of our lives reflecting on how could have done better.

We will ban / remove anyone who we determine to be a threat to the safety and sense of security of our community. Period.

A Better Nomadic, Overlanding, and Vanlife Community

The Lost Places event series of which Moonlanding is a part was created as a way to bring an often disparate community together in “temporary villages” in celebration of one another and the places where they are held.

In the most absolute and emotional way: it is how we fight the darkness, and how we want to make this short life we have just a little bit better.

Moving forward we will be doing the following three things, and we invite feedback and collaboration from the entire nomadic, overlanding, and vanlife community, and in the coming weeks we will be sharing more formal means of communication and collaboration beyond emailing or direct messaging our team members.

We also expect and insist on participation from the entire community, and want to see similar efforts enacted in other events, from small informal campouts to rallies to “desert raves” and to the larger expos and “temporary villages” like The Lost Places.

Firstly, independent, neutral safe spaces staffed by SA prevention and response experts should be present in some form at all events and made available to victims. We will be updating our processes to take into account these new spaces, including how and when we respond as organizers and how and when we engage with both the police and healthcare professionals.

We’ve already begun talking with a few people in our network who are experts in this field, and will continue to do so. This will take a little time, but it is the right thing to do.

Secondly, we will be creating and adopting a code of conduct that is mandatory for all participants of our events. We have just begun this work, and we look forward to feedback and input from the community. This will take some time and collaboration, but it is the right thing to do.

Thirdly we will be reaching out to other event organizers, learning from them, and also encouraging them to take similar steps. We can go farther, together, because this is the right thing to do.

We believe this is how we grow. That this is how we can make each other safer, and that this is how we can make the world a better place.

Update: Late on 10/14 Brian Besseler of the Wuzabus was informed that relationship with The Journal of Lost Time and its Lost Places event series was terminated.

We invite you, after careful thought and reflection, to join the discussion with kindness and empathy, here.