Space and the City, Part 2 Featuring Devorah Block, Strategy & Engagement Educator & Advisor for the Third Sector, Salon of Urban Architecture & Circles Squared “What we are looking at as a global society, in different shades and in different ways and with different contexts and nuances, and what a lot of people are seeking out, is putting a real value on the human again. With the difference that it's the human contextualized within our larger living ecosystem, not person first, but ...
Feb 23, 2024•29 min•Season 2Ep. 7
❤️Special Valentine’s Day Weekend Edition❤️ Jill Romanelli, Head Event Planner, Tuscan Wedding Are you dreaming about getting married in Tuscany? Perhaps you’ve already decided that you want a Tuscan destination wedding, but just don’t know where to start? Or maybe you’re a hopeless romantic like me and want to celebrate Valentine’s Day weekend by listening to some fantastic stories about weddings. Whatever the case may be, you won’t want to miss this very special edition of 15 with Fosca, featu...
Feb 16, 2024•54 min•Season 2Ep. 6
“I think that arriving in Florence, where value was placed on life much more than it is on work, was key. I was much more interested in living a certain kind of life than I was in making a certain amount of money, and that's really what sustains me here. Then The Recovery Plan, Black History Month Florence, those were built to make up for all the things that I was not okay with. There's a lot about this place that I had huge issues with, and I needed to create something that would allow, maybe m...
Feb 09, 2024•33 min•Season 2Ep. 5
“Of all the platforms, Black History Month is the one where we really work on activating our network. Because we have all year to do our work and share what we do, but we really want other institutions to be involved, to show what they're doing. To connect with us. And so that's really the moment of February for us and it's the moment of maybe more visibility. It's the moment of bringing a lot of people into our space that have never been here and to hearing a lot of new conversations.” Justin R...
Feb 02, 2024•32 min•Season 2Ep. 4
“It's such an interesting, eye-opening experience of people and their relationship with their culinary foundation; just the way that they eat and survive in their world. I think where that bar is is extremely telling about the priorities of a culture and the priorities of the people within it.” Mike Reisman, on eating in Italy Shortly after he returned from a trip to Rome, Florence, and Milan, I sat down for a Zoom chat with Mike Reisman, mixologist, foodie, cook, musician, and first time Italy ...
Jan 26, 2024•50 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Season 2, Episode 2 Space and the City, part 1 Devorah Block, Strategy & Engagement Educator & Advisor for the Third Sector, Salon of Urban Architecture & Circles Squared “I think Italy has something special about it. There’s a quality of life but also a quality to the life here which is probably impossible to replicate anywhere else.” Devorah Block In this first part of our chat, Devorah and I speak about chance encounters, her journey to Italy, and how the country has impacted her ...
Jan 19, 2024•23 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Episodio speciale registrato da Musikalmente Firenze il 17 dicembre 2023 “Spero di portare il mio messaggio anche a quelle persone che magari sono ancora chiuse nelle loro camerette a cantare e ballare segretamente perché hanno paura di farlo fuori.” Jade In un freddo e ventoso sabato pomeriggio poco prima di Natale, ho avuto l’immenso piacere di intervistare Jade, una giovane performer toscana piena di verve e talento di cui sentirete parlare molto. Abbiamo chiacchierato, un po’ in inglese, un ...
Jan 12, 2024•28 min•Season 2Ep. 1
In part two of my conversation with Giada and Sam, we continue to discuss some of the most critical differences between the US and Italian education systems and how they are shaping a new generation of global citizens. As we dig deeper into these questions, and their inevitable cultural implications, we also touch upon activism, walk-outs, and the very Italian notions of occupazione and scioperi , happening all over Italian high schools right now, and which Giada helps us unpack. We also have fu...
Dec 08, 2023•26 min•Season 1Ep. 20
“I think people are seeking out more personalized, curated experiences. You want to feel like you’re a part of a community in a way. That for us is rather important and we have had such an amazing supportive community of people, not just here but also abroad, and it's made a huge difference in our business and the way we do things at Querceto di Castellina.” Mary Shea As we move into the holiday season, I had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with the delightful Mary Shea, Director of Market...
Dec 01, 2023•49 min•Season 1Ep. 19
On our last day in the US this summer, I sat down with my nephew, Samuel Pellegrino McNeill, and my daughter, Giada Veronica Ciampi, to talk about identity, the value of studying the Italian language in the US, and what it’s like growing up half-American in Italy and Italian American in the US today. In this first part of our chat, we speak about their cultural and linguistic connections, respectively to Italy and to the US, and engage in a dialogue about the similarities and the differences bet...
Nov 24, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 18
Are you dreaming about moving to Italy and making a life for yourself? Curious about the path to getting an MBA in Italy and then staying on to build a career? Hoping to gain insight into the daily reality of a young US expat living in Italy today? Don’t miss this this week’s episode of 15 with Fosca, recorded via Zoom with Scott Cauble (bio. below). Join Scott and me for a lively conversation about the mobility of talent, Italy’s changing work and family spheres, and the challenges and the triu...
Nov 17, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 17
“Francesca studied in Rome through RISD, where she went to college, so at RISD’s European Honors Program in Rome from 1978-79. And I would say that year in Rome, in addition to her childhood there, but that year in Rome, was extremely formative, maybe the most formative time of Francesca's life artistically; that's because she did immerse herself with artists and intellectuals and radicals.” Amy Love Tomasso Join me and Amy as she continues to ask questions in an effort to put together the many ...
Nov 10, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Episodio Speciale in Italiano – Special Episodio in Italiano “C’è tutta una serie di connessioni bellissime che Michelangelo mi ha passato. Lui mi insegue, io inseguo lui piuttosto. Siamo sempre in connessione.” Tommaso Brogini Questa settimana vi porto di nuovo con me nella bottega dell’artista fiorentino, Tommaso Brogini, per la seconda parte della nostra conversazione su Michelangelo e il rapporto intimo che Brogini ha tutt’ora con il grande genio. Parliamo anche di altri artisti, luoghi e co...
Nov 03, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 15
“Il Moro aims to be an ode to self-love for Black-Italians, Afropeans and the African diaspora, a reminder that we are an integral part of European history beyond the way it has portrayed us up until now.” Daphne Di Cinto, Il Moro – The Moor: a Real Black Duke, Beyond Fiction . The Los Angeles Tribune , April 19, 2022. In this very special episode, recorded via Zoom, I speak with Daphne Di Cinto, director, screenwriter, and producer of the ground-breaking short film Il Moro - The Moor , winner o...
Oct 27, 2023•49 min•Season 1Ep. 14
EPISODIO SPECIALE IN ITALIANO – SPECIAL EPISODIO IN ITALIANO “La musica deve essere qualcosa in grande evoluzione, oggi lo è più di prima perché il mondo è più velocemente in evoluzione.” Maurizio Tomberli Oggi a 15 with Fosca ho il piacere di avere di nuovo con me due ospiti fantastici, Maestri Eric Buffat e Maurizio Tomberli, fondatori di Florence Academy, un’accademia di musica pop nel centro storico di Firenze. In questa seconda parte della nostra conversazione parliamo di quello che succede...
Oct 20, 2023•25 min•Season 1Ep. 13
“Francesca once wrote that she wanted to write her autobiography. I hope that by writing the definitive narrative of her life, Francesca will finally have this desire fulfilled, and the world can know her as she was: multifaceted, on fire about life and art, and solare .” Amy Love Tomasso Warning: This episode discusses suicide. In this week’s episode my special guest, Amy Love Tomasso, and I delve into the life and work of the iconic photographer Francesca Woodman. More specifically, we talk ab...
Oct 13, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Episodio Speciale in Italiano – Special Episodio in Italiano La bottega del pittore “Mi piace relazionarmi con le persone lasciando la mia bottega aperta alla strada e a tutti coloro che desiderano e amano l’arte; un luogo dove ognuno è libero di esprimere se stesso sotto la mia guida, accompagnato dai miei consigli e dalla musica che rende l’atmosfera famigliare e accogliente.” Tommaso Brogini, Non Finito Art Gallery Studio Un pomeriggio di primavera arrivo in anticipo per un appuntamento nel c...
Oct 06, 2023•17 min•Season 1Ep. 11
In this episode I share some very personal experiences and stories that strive to give global expats, expat families, digital nomads, temporary visitors, and permanent international residents some hints and tips for making meaningful connections and creating and building community in Florence and in Italy. This solo podcast is a response to the many queries I receive from clients as well as expats I encounter in Florence, who ask me for advice on how to feel a true sense of belonging when living...
Sep 29, 2023•15 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Episodio speciale in italiano – Special episode in Italian Join me for the first part of an informative and lively conversation with musicians Eric Buffat and Maurizio Tomberli, founders of Florence Academy, a modern music school, housed in a Renaissance palazzo in the heart of downtown Florence. In this episode, we talk about how Florence Academy shapes young musicians and transforms them into savvy artists able to navigate skillfully all aspects of today’s music industry. We also converse abou...
Sep 22, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Tanti Auguri Babbo, Happy Birthday Dad! On the eve of a milestone birthday, I sat down with my father, Pellegrino D’Acierno, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature and Italian Studies at Hofstra University, for an unscripted and unedited talk about his life as a “professional Italian”. In this special episode, streaming on his 80th birthday, we have a father daughter heart to heart that spans everything from the great auteurs of Italian cinema, to aesthetics, the notions of t...
Sep 12, 2023•46 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Embracing Florence Join me for part 2 of my chiacchierata with Elisabetta Verdone, founder and owner of Florence’s Monnalisa Italian Language and Culture School. In this episode, we’ll continue our conversations about the learning journey and talk about Italian study as a moveable feast happening in special places throughout the city. We’ll also touch on favorite Italian words and songs and what they say about the culture and speak about future plans for this jewel of a language school....
Sep 08, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Join Francesca Lupia and me for part two of our conversation as we discuss the LGBTIQA+ community, as well as broader questions of gender and identity in Italy today. We also cover where Italy is in terms of these important questions, what’s going on with young Italians today, how to fight brain drain, and why this is a do or die moment for the country. Further Information and Resources Arcigay - Arcigay is Italy’s main LGBTI not-for-profit. It is also the largest in terms of number of volunteer...
Sep 01, 2023•14 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Finding Authenticity and Making Connections in Florence Join me and Leigh Biddlecome for the second part of our conversation where we cover everything from human connections and daily interactions to food, the Italian Language, over tourism, and sustainability. askfosca.com
Aug 11, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Learning Italian with compassion, flexibility and in expert hands at Florence’s Scuola Monna Lisa Studying a foreign language can be a frustrating process for so many of us, regardless of our age, but it doesn’t have to and it shouldn’t be. Imagine studying the Italian language in its birthplace, in the heart of beautiful downtown Florence, in a fun and relaxing environment and with a personal touch. Tune in for my conversation with Elisabetta Verdone, Head of Florence’s MonnaLisa Italian Langua...
Aug 04, 2023•17 min•Season 1Ep. 4
This is part one of a two-part series with Stanford alumna and Fulbright scholar, Francesca Lupia . Francesca is trained as an anthropologist and studies, among other things, the Chinese Italian community in Italy. Join Francesca and me as we talk about her journey to Florence, her nuanced and complex relationship with ltaly, and why she chose to stay; first for her M.A. at a public Italian university and now for a PhD at Florence’s European University Institute. #Fullbright #Stanford #15withFos...
Jul 28, 2023•18 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Leigh Biddlecome: 1 Italian Beaurocracy Zero Tune in this week for part one of my two-part conversation with special guest, Leigh Biddlecome. A writer, translator, and curator based in Italy, Leigh is an alumna of Stanford and Oxford Universities, and recently completed an EU-Funded Masters in Heritage Studies at EHESS Paris / ELTE Budapest. In this first part of our chat, Leigh and I talk about the challenges of getting the much-coveted freelance visa, her work in the Italian and European cultu...
Jul 21, 2023•17 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Welcome to 15 with Fosca! Are you passionate about Italy, getting ready to spend time in the country, or perhaps even dreaming of moving here someday? If you’re curious about what’s happening in Italy and with Italian culture right now, this is the podcast for you. This debut episode chronicles my journey to Italy and my current life in Florence and offers a preview of the topics that my guests and I will be discussing in the coming weeks as they share their stories and their voices from Italy d...
Jul 14, 2023•14 min•Season 1Ep. 1
