John Anthony Bird was born january 30th 1946, is a british social entrepreneur and life peer. he is well known through his work in creating the big issue, a magazinethat is used to attack homelessness by letting them sell the magazines on for double the price they are originally bought for. the magazine is edited by professional journalists and sold by street vendors who are homeless or vulnerably-housed.
John was born in notting hill slum to a porr london-irish family. he became homeless by the age of five, living in an orphanahe between the ages of seven and ten, and was often excluded from school, he then became a butches boy soon after leaving the orphanage and accompanied his income with stealing. he spent several hours in prison throughout his teens and early twenites where he learnt to read, write and the basics of printing. Bird then attended Chealsea school of art, but again ended up homeless by 1967, sleeping rough in Edinburgh while being saught after by the police for petty offences.
growing older, in 1991 at the age of 45, john bird launched the big issue magazine with gordon roddick, the co-founder of the body shop.
The Big Issue magazine started as a London venture but expanded with specific editions and services to other British cities, and then to other countries. Bird is also the founder of the International Network of Street Papers, which now incorporates over 100 street papers, and is published in 34 countries in 24 languages. In 2001, with The Big Issue Group chairman, Nigel Kershaw OBE, Bird founded Big Issue Invest,[6] a provider of finance for businesses, charities and NGOs with the aim of creating positive social change. It is the social investment arm of The Big Issue Group, and initially only dealt in loan finance. In 2009, Big Issue Invest launched a social investment fund, and has since invested more than £30 million in hundreds of social enterprises making a positive impact in communities across the UK.
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