The Big Issue

The Big Issue is a UK-based street paper that supports the homeless, the vulnerably housed asnd those seeking to escape poverty. Vendors normally buy the magazine for £1.25 and sell to the public for £2.50. We are using Zinio digital editions to create additonal revenue opportunities to fund our street-based and pastoral care services for our vendors. We are a social enterprise company and all revenues go to support the vulnerable communities we serve. Our goal is to move our vendors away from dependency and towards full time employment

China gears up for car demand

THE DISPATCH • News, views & miscellany

The Big Issue

EDITOR’S LETTER • We’re spending longer in there, but nothing in the garden is rosy right now

BIRD’S WORDS • Field of dreams and realities

LETTERS

The BIG ISSUE BULLETIN • What we’ve done, what we’re doing

GLOBAL ROUNDUP • Street papers and positive thinkers making a difference around the world

AROUND THE WORLD IN 150 YEARS

WHEN A KITE IS IN FLIGHT THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE • One year after the Taliban seized control of his country, an Afghan immigrant is bringing his love of kites to the UK in a festival that represents “an aerial act of solidarity” with his people

‘EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE WITH THEIR FAMILY’

COLIN MURRAY • He was a hyperactive underage raver with a Bros haircut, then a trip overseas blew his teenage world wide open

POWER OF A FLOWER

Books

Film

THE SONG THAT POINTS OUT CHINA’S FRAGILITY

LUCY SWEET IS ON THE VERGE

Music

Puzzles

MY PITCH • Co-op, Crofton Park, Lewisham, London 10am-12pm Tuesday-Friday

THE FUTURE WAS ALWAYS ELECTRIC • The pandemic and cost-of-living crisis has stalled many of our ambitions and changed the way we work, play, and how we get around while carrying out those activities. The environmental crisis too means it’s more important than ever to balance the price we pay for convenience versus the price it costs the planet. There are infrastructure projects designed years ago for a world that doesn’t exist any more. The increase in working from home has altered our commute. Towns and cities are being reshaped by evolving shopping habits.There are changes needed now to make sure we can still keep moving forward to an uncertain future. In this supplement we look at the big issues facing transport today, and highlight solutions that will drive change for a better tomorrow.

RIDING THE BUS IN A TRANSPORT WASTELAND • The worst and best places for public transport in the UK are only 90 minutes apart by car in Somerset. We went by bus and the journey took all day. On that epic trip we learned a lot

END OF THE ROADS FOR WALES?

IS HS2 THE RIGHT WAY FORWARD? • HS2 or not HS2 – that is the question still being asked about the biggest infrastructure project under way in Britain to connect London with the north (though not as far north as originally planned). We challenged Susan Ryall of High-Speed Rail Group, and Penny Gaines of Stop HS2, to make the case for and against high-speed rail

DRIVING CHANGE FOR GOOD • As we unveil The Big Issue’s new three-year partnership with Citroën, updating our magazine delivery vans from diesel to electric vehicles, Vicky Carroll hops aboard the first EV to join our fleet

THE CITY THAT’S BEEN CAR-FREE FOR A DECADE

BREAKING THE CYCLE OF HOMELESSNESS BY FIXING BICYCLES

SILICON VALLEY’S VISION OF THE FUTURE LEAVES PLENTY OF US BEHIND • Tech companies promise a future of green and convenient transport – but who for?