From 78 entries, we’re down to the final five – it’s time to reveal the Best Cover Finalists for the 2019 INSP Awards.

The Big Issue has been part of Dodge Dawson’s life for many years and he’s always found his way back to the magazine. He credits the magazine with helping him to increase his confidence and to learn new skills. After being helped by so many people in his life, Dodge now volunteers with Street Vets and the NHS in addition to working as a Big Issue vendor. He wants to give something back in return for all of the help that he’s received from others.

As the European Parliament elections approach this week, Hus Forbi spoke to Freek Spinnewijn, director of FEANTSA, the European organisation fighting to end homelessness. He talks about the importance of the coming vote in relation to tackling homelessness across member states, and why this particular European election matters more than ever.

Street paper vendors have been giving the inside scoop on the cities they know best. Here, The Big Issue Australia vendor Luceil talks about Canberra.

Street paper vendors have been giving the inside scoop on the cities they know best. Here, The Big Issue Australia vendor Jeromy talks about Brisbane.

The homeless community has long been the target of police action and prosecution, often creating an insurmountable backlog of tickets and non-violent misdemeanors that can effectively shut people off from safe housing, education and jobs, and perpetuating cycles of poverty. Portland’s Street Roots partnered with other organisations on a project aimed at helping vendors attain a clean slate.

Gerri has been an Augustin vendor for two decades and is a familiar face in Vienna. He sells the magazine in the Gürtel bar district, where he’s known for his friendly demeanour, is on first-name terms with the local bar owners and fields endless questions – with a certain level of bemusement – from people about the fact that he is nearly always barefoot.

Street paper vendors have been giving the inside scoop on the cities they know best. Here, The Big Issue Australia vendor Daniel talks about Adelaide.

The Big Issue Australia asked a selection of its vendors to share what it’s like to sleep when you have no place to call home.

Brian Lane credits his Lummi Tribe heritage with helping him to recover from a traumatic injury: he feels that the spirit of his tribal lineage gave him the ability to pull through. Now homeless and living with a disability, Brian has found something else that is helping him to navigate his way through life: Street Roots. His involvement with the magazine has brought growth, support and the possibility of moving forward.

The Blankfaces is a Glasgow-based social enterprise fashion label that works with people experiencing homelessness on design ideas to create stylish streetwear with a message. INSP spoke to its founder Gerard McKenzie-Govan about the impetus behind the business and giving an outlet for the homeless community’s creative spirit.

For winning photographer Buffie Irvine, the Hope in Shadows project became more than a photo contest. She has been a Megaphone vendor for eight years and her father for 14. When customers realise the family connection, they start talking to her and it makes her feel close to her community. The Hope in Shadows photography project made her feel close to something else; something that she loved. Her Dad.

We’re introducing two brand new awards as part of the INSP Awards 2019 – the first of which is Best Special Edition. Here’s the Top 10 Nominees…

Say cheese…it’s time for us to announce the Best Photograph Nominees for the INSP Awards 2019!

In urban landscapes all over the United States, residents experiencing homelessness are at the mercy of yet another hardship: anti-homeless design. With “defensive” architecture driving people out of parks and off sidewalks, the question is: Who are public spaces meant for?

This award acknowledges excellence in street paper design – find out who’s made the Top 10.

Best Cover is always one of our most hotly contested INSP Awards, and this year is no exception, with a record 78 entries in this category from street papers around the world!

We’re continuing to announce the nominees for the Editorial categories of the 2019 INSP Awards, and next up is the Top 10 for Best Vendor Contribution.

Réjean is a one-man band – an extremely talented individual. Here, he talks about his love of music, a more dangerous and temperamental love of alcohol, giving it up, using his talents for those in need and finding himself a L’Itinéraire vendor.

We’re continuing with our 2019 INSP Awards announcements, and today it’s the Top 10 Entries for Best Cultural Feature.

We’re delighted to reveal the first set of nominees for the INSP Awards 2019 today, and we’re kicking off with the Top 10 Entries for Best News Feature.

Helping readers get to know our vendors is a big motivator for putting together street papers. For this story, The Curbside Chronicle asked vendors to document a week’s worth of meals with a food diary, curious to know more about what vendors are eating. They photographed a single day of meals from several participants. The results were mixed — everything from multiple visits to soup kitchens to eating nothing at all. But one thing was clear, most vendors experience significant food insecurity. Hopefully this piece helps illustrate how poverty affects people and what they eat every day.

We received a record number of entries for the 2019 INSP Awards – with an impressive total of 365 submissions from 54 street papers in 28 countries.

Three Dutch street papers – Amsterdam’s Z!, Utrecht’s Straatnieuws, and Haags Straatnieuws in The Hague – have joined forces to create shared content in each of their publications. The eight-page section, titled STOEP, is just the latest move towards regional collaboration within the street paper network.

Life hasn’t been smooth sailing for Nondumiso Zigana, a Big Issue South Africa vendor, but that hasn’t stopped her from pursuing her heart’s desires. She shares her journey of being an unemployed widow to being a mother of intellectuals.

Serbian street paper Liceulice is launching a sister magazine, published in English, which is billed as an “extraordinary, socially responsible, activist guide for the guests of Belgrade and Serbia”. Belgrade Less Ordinary will be released twice a year with the proceeds going to Liceulice projects and, ultimately, its vendors.

Curbside Chronicle vendors Mark and Rene got married last year, and now the Oklahoma City street paper wants to share what everyone missed from their wedding. Here’s the recap featuring everything from wedding cupcakes to the first dance.

Portland’s Street Roots has a periodic column about the parts of homelessness most people don’t talk about. In this instalment, vendors describe how a common cold can potentially turn into a life threatening illness when they have nowhere to go to recuperate while sick.