JUSTICE IS NOT ENOUGH: LOVE IS NEEDED

Lord John Bird, Member of the House of Lords and founder of The Big Issue; Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, founder of Mary’s Meals. Moderated by Marco Piuri, President of Banco Alimentare Foundation ETS

Two extraordinary stories of social change meet on the stage of the 2025 Rimini Meeting. On one side, Lord John Bird, the former homeless man who became a member of the British House of Lords and the visionary founder of The Big Issue, the magazine that has transformed thousands of lives by offering dignity and opportunity to those living on the streets. On the other, Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, the Scottish entrepreneur who gave up everything to dedicate himself to the world’s poorest children, creating Mary’s Meals, the organization that now feeds over 2.4 million children in schools across 18 countries. Two different yet complementary approaches to the fight against poverty and social exclusion: Bird with his philosophy of “a hand up, not a handout,” and MacFarlane-Barrow with his conviction that a simple meal can change the destiny of a child. Both testify that authentic charity goes beyond justice, building bridges of hope where none seem possible. Leading the dialogue is Marco Piuri, president of Banco Alimentare Foundation, which for over thirty years in Italy has been transforming food waste into a resource for those in need—an everyday expression of the active charity that lies at the heart of the 2025 Meeting’s reflection.