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Alessandro Magnasco (Lissandrino) - The Verziere Market
Who’d benefit from the survival of the Marketplace? 

I l i n c a   M a c a r i e

I will deliberately misinterpret the question, by exchanging “who” by “what”

The local economy will benefit. Local producers and service providers will sell their goods in reachable distance and traceable manner directly to the consumer.

The local gastronomic culture and culture in general will benefit. The surrounding of a good marketplace is a good soil for restaurants and gastronomic providers. Quality products and food-knowledge are the main ingredients for a gastronomic revival, especially nowadays when food becomes more and more part of a trendy and cultivated lifestyle.

The environment will benefit. It´s obvious: eating locally protects small farms, and this prevents the developing of industrial and commercial land-use. All the environmental damage caused by food transportation on long distances is avoided. The awareness provided by local farming encourages the farmers to turn organic, avoiding pesticides and implementing systems that are less resource intensive than commercial agriculture

The local tourism will benefit. Farmers markets have a high potential of becoming touristic attractions. Not only the food tourist, but also the average visitor wants to explore local customs and products.

The health will benefit. - Well, eating fresh fruits and vegetables is proven to be healthy.

The animal welfare will benefit. Local small organic meat, egg and dairy producers lead to less industrial animal farming and fewer animals transported in horrid conditions over long distances.

The social life will benefit. I do not know many other more pleasant activities, than strolling with family or friends over a local market.

The education will benefit. Children will learn about eating healthy, about food production and about taste and food-culture.

So, concluding, almost every living creature will benefit.

Ilinca Macarie was born in Bucharest, where she began studying architecture at the University of Architecture and Urbanism Ion Mincu. In 1989 she moved to Cologne, where she graduated in architecture at the Architecture Highschool Cologne (FH Köln). Following, she studied in Frankfurt at the State University of Art, Staedelschule ("Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Kunst"), department of conceptual architecture, and graduated with the degree of "Master of Arts" (Advanced Architectural Design), Diploma of the State University of Creative Art, Frankfurt am Main, class of Enric Miralles, Peter Cook, Mark Wigley, Cecil Balmond.

Immediately after graduation  she started her career as an independent architect ,  participating in competitions of architecture and urbanism, and shortly after she started her academic career in higher education, in parallel with the independent architecture activity. From 2000 to 2005 she worked as a teaching assistant and lecturer at the Technical University of Darmstadt at the architecture department of design and building technology of Prof. KH Petzinka. Until 2006 the office was based in Frankfurt, then moved to Bucharest.  She continued for a brief period her academic work at the University of Architecture and Urbanism "Ion Mincu" in Bucharest.

In addition to her professional career, but in close cooperation with it, Ilinca is active in civil society. She advocates a change in the strategies and the mindset of urban solutions, she promotes the democratization of urban space, and the protection of cultural and architectural values as well as their integration in urban development. From 2016 Ilinca is active in politics, being a founding member of the party USB, later USR (Save Romania Union) and has been elected as local counselor in the Council of the District 1 City hall in Bucharest.

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