My grandchildren will feel the heat
Striding into 2016
I ’ ve finally found the time to sit down and read the Christmas Issue . What a fantastic read . I love Letter to my Younger Self , so it was great to see a round-up . And I was so proud to read ‘ Paving the way to success ’ about the amazing strides that your vendors have made in 2015 .
In fact , there is a tear in my eye after reading about their achievements . I hope I can keep this feeling with me to inspire me to make a diference in 2016 . Thank you for producing such a fantastic magazine . PS : My vendor is Mark in South End Green , NW3 – lovely , hard-working bloke ! Alison George , email
Happy with Bratz
On Christmas Eve my family and I were just watching a Christmas movie when there was a knock at the door . A large box was delivered and I was puzzled . I opened it to find Bratz dolls . I couldn ’ t understand why I got a delivery of them when I spotted the letter saying I won them from The Big Issue .
My eight-year-old daughter was absolutely over the moon and it made her feel very special indeed ! I can ’ t thank you enough . It was a wonderful surprise and she loves them . I ’ ve enclosed a photo of my daughter , Natalie , and her ( sur ) prize . Many thanks for making us smile on Christmas Eve . Happy new year ! Collette Sherriffs , email
@ alanbissett There are obvious reasons to buy The Big Issue . A feature on THE 20TH CENTURY ’ S TWO GREATEST GENIUSES ! ( Roger Waters and Syd Barrett ) is but one .
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COMMENT OF THE WEEK
My grandchildren will feel the heat
Re :‘ Stopdenyingtheclimateischanging ’[ December 7-13 ]. Iamagrandmotherinmy70sandIamnota scientist , I can only recall how things were in the 1940s – wedidn ’ thavecentralheating , onlycoalfiresinmy parents ’ home . This caused fog air pollution , and as a childwithwarmclothingonIdon ’ trecallfeelingcold – however the elderly possibly did . I don ’ t have any central heating on in my home today , admittedly layers ofclothingcutheatingcostsbuttheatmosphereinthe home is warm . We didn ’ t have food wrapped in plastics and it was mostly pesticide-free . In our road there were no cars . We didn ’ t have dafodils blooming in December , we didn ’ t have deforestation or intensive animal farms . Methane ( from intensive animal farming ) and nitrous oxide ( from cars ) emissions are no laughing matter . We can ’ tgobacktothe ’ 40s . We ’ reallresponsibleforour choices . Let ’ s educate more on this problem , continue to raise awareness . I ’ m concerned for my grandchildren . M Scallion , Epsom , Surrey
@ Charlee _ G To the lovely # BigIssue vendor in Covent Garden , thank you for directing me when I was lost ! Still can ’ t use Google Maps ….
@ bigissueuk
PAW-SOME !
Reader Anthony Henderson was so delighted with his signed James and Street Cat Bob poster he sent us this pic .
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THE BIG ISSUE / p4 / January 11-17 2016
Find your path
It was an unexpected pleasure to find a image of the LISA Pathfinder satellite on the cover of the New Year issue , and a nice mention in the ‘ 6 big reasons ’ article inside .
But were you aware that the satellite was built in Stevenage by Airbus Defence and Space , and that a number of British universities , supported by the UK Space Agency , contributed to the scientific payload ? Neil Dunbar , spacecraft engineering manager , LISA Pathfinder team
Beat to the street
Just read [ former police oicer ] Russell Monk ’ s article on homelessness [ January 4-10 ], a very moving story . Thank you for sharing . Chris Hannan , Facebook
@ pjch2106 Profound article by Russell Monk in @ BigIssue this week . Makes me feel grateful for what I have . Well worth a read .
Out of our depth ?
After the storms and floods two years ago , David Cameron said : “ Business as usual .” But the new defences were overtopped and flooding occurred in new locations as consistent heavy rain fell over wide areas . Here in Tring the ground , though over chalk , is waterlogged . On December 28 the Environment Agency called for a “ complete rethink ” to flood defences . The buzzword is changing from sustainability to resilience , not only for cities in developing countries but in flood-prone areas and communities at home .
To blame building on flood plains ignores riverside towns which have existed there for centuries ; new techniques can help here , and also reduce the impact of flooding in flood plains which are needed to prevent flooding elsewhere . More and higher defences can have unintended consequences .
One pointer to hope this year is the community spirit and generosity shown during the floods ; let ’ s show this nationally towards people without homes , and to refugees . Leslie Barker , Tring