L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 20, 2025 www.italoamericano.org 10 L'Italo-Americano environmental challenges: in Parma, one of Italy's most food-conscious cities, a rigor- ous campaign against waste has transformed the way its residents dispose of trash. T h e c i t y i n t r o d u c e d a n advanced recycling system, with strict fines for non-com- pliance and even surveillance to ensure proper waste dis- p o s a l . T h i s a p p r o a c h h a s m a d e P a r m a o n e o f t h e cleanest cities in Italy, an e x a m p l e o f h o w l ' a r t e d i arrangiarsi can apply not only to individual survival but also to civic innovation. Throughout history, Ital- ians have found ways to work around challenges, whether it was the Venetian Repub- lic's ability to mass-produce ships in the Arsenale cen- turies before industrializa- tion, or modern entrepre- n e u r s r e i n v e n t i n g f a m i l y b u s i n e s s e s f o r t h e g l o b a l market. It is a mindset that values cleverness and flexi- bility, but also a recognition that sometimes rules must be bent or reinterpreted, and that an imperfect solution is, often, better than no solution at all. But l'arte di arrangiarsi, it is important to admit it, is in many ways a philosophy of life, a belief in creativity over jobs, and identities as cir- cumstances demand. It is a sharp satire but also a reflec- tion of a reality familiar to many Italians: the ability to adjust, to reinvent, to make the best of any situation. The same theme runs through m a n y o f t h e g r e a t I t a l i a n comedies of the mid-20th century (a potential soon-to- be UNESCO Heritage candi- date, as we wrote in our last edition), films that portray the struggles and small victo- ries of ordinary people living in an often absurd world. This spirit of adaptabil- ity is still alive and well today, particularly in busi- ness. Many Italian artisans and entrepreneurs continue to find ways to bring together tradition with innovation in what, perhaps, is more com- m i t m e n t t o a v i s i o n t h a n s h e e r " m a k i n g d o . " I n Venice, for instance, the last r e m a i n i n g v e l v e t w e a v e r , Bevilacqua, has managed to survive by adapting its centuries-old techniques to modern luxury markets, thus demonstrating how tradi- tional craft industries can keep on thriving, when they find new ways to appeal to contemporary consumers. This adaptability is also evident in Italy's approach to rigidity, in action over hesita- tion. It is what allows a fami- ly-run trattoria to survive against multinational chains, what keeps historic work- shops in Florence making leather goods the same way they have for centuries, while successfully gaining new cus- tomers. It is also, when you look closely, what fuels the endless ingenuity of Italian design, from cars to furniture to fashion. To those who did not grow up seeing it firsthand, l'arte di arrangiarsi might look like improvisation, a last- minute way of fixing a prob- lem. But to those of us who have watched our grandpar- ents sew buttons back onto shirts instead of buying new ones, who have eaten the best meals of our lives made from whatever was left in the kitchen, who have seen entire communities find ways to thrive in the face of uncer- tainty, we know it is much more than that. It is a way of thinking, a way of living, an instinctive ability to make the best of any situation. A n d w h i l e I t a l y h a s changed and modernized, l'arte di arrangiarsi remains at the heart of what makes the country, and its people, so uniquely resilient. necessity: dishes like the iconic cacio e pepe, made w i t h n o t h i n g b u t p a s t a , cheese, and black pepper, or pasta aglio e olio, which uses only garlic, olive oil, and chili, are masterpieces of simplicity and, well… cheap- ness. Of course, our national a b i l i t y t o a d a p t e x t e n d s beyond food. In the 19th cen- tury, the scarcity of cocoa led to one of Italy's most famous culinary inventions. During the Napoleonic wars, the British blockade of conti- nental Europe made choco- late prohibitively expensive. I n T u r i n , a c h o c o l a t i e r named Michele Prochet decided to stretch his cocoa supply by mixing it with fine- ly ground hazelnuts, a local p r o d u c t . T h e r e s u l t w a s g i a n d u i a , w h i c h w o u l d later inspire the creation of Nutella. The art of making do, and its love for improvisation and reinvention, is so important in Italy, that we even have movies about it: in L'Arte di Arrangiarsi, a 1954 film starring Alberto Sordi, the protagonist is a man who constantly reinvents himself t o a d a p t t o t h e c h a n g i n g political and social land- scape, switching allegiances, I f you grew up as I did, w i t h g r a n d p a r e n t s who lived through the last world war, you know how incredibly resourceful they were. They could cook with almost noth- ing, they knew how to fix just about everything, and noth- ing went to waste because they could always find anoth- er use for it. I s u p p o s e t h e y w e r e n ' t called the Greatest Gener- ation for nothing. There was an art to their ability to make do, to trans- form the little they had into something useful, even beau- tiful. In Italy, this attitude h a s a n a m e : l ' a r t e d i arrangiarsi. The ability to get by with limited means is not simply a product of wartime struggle, it has deep historical roots because Italy, despite its rich cultural heritage, has not always been a land of abun- dance. Even before the unifi- cation of the country in the nineteenth century, many of its regions were forced to cope with economic instabili- ty, foreign rule, and limited resources. Basically, through- out history, Italians have adapted by making the best of what they had. Frugality was often required to navi- gate times of economic hard- ship, regional trade restric- tions called for ingenuity, and some creativity was nec- essary to survive in the war- torn cities of pre-unification I t a l y . B a s i c a l l y , l ' a r t e d i arrangiarsi has always been a key to our survival. P e r h a p s n o t h i n g i l l u s - trates this spirit more than Italian food, because what the world now knows as one of the finest cuisines is, in many cases, the direct result o f h a r d s h i p . C u c i n a povera, literally "poor cui- sine," is based on the princi- ple of making the most out of simple, often leftover ingre- dients. Every region has its own variations, but the logic is the same everywhere: day- old bread is never wasted; it b e c o m e s p a p p a a l pomodoro or ribollita in T u s c a n y , p a n c o t t o i n P u g l i a , o r a c q u a s a l e i n Campania. Less noble cuts of meat are turned into stews, braises, or slow-cooked deli- cacies, stretching every bit of nourishment from what was available. Even pasta sauces were frequently born from LUCA SIGNORINI The arte di arrangiarsi is a quintessential Italian skill! (Image created with DALL-E 2) Sapersi arrangiare: the Italian art of turning little into plenty LIFE PEOPLE PLACES EVENTS

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