Aleksandra Scepanovic was born into a nation soon to be at war.Growing up in then Yugoslavia, she found herself entering adulthood in the middle of the Bosnian war. While she lived in the relative safety of Belgrade (at least in the early part of the war), she left to head into the heat of the war-zone, on a quest to discover not just the highly-filtered stories being reported by a state-controlled media, but the truth on-the-ground.Scepanovic joined local media efforts, became a reporter, then editor and analyst, where she spent years documenting and sharing what happened as her country divided itself, became decimated from violence, leaving so many lives destroyed and entire areas riddled with broken “Swiss cheese-like” buildings. The experience left her not only longing for truth, justice and peace, but also with a belief in architecture as a symbol of perseverance and the human need to rebuild and move on.Aleksandra eventually made her way to New York, where she discovered a love of design and pursued a degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology. That program awakened her inner eye for detail, and also invigorated her passion for architecture and interiors. Blending the experience of seeing a brutal war destroy so many homes with her renewed passion to help people find and create beautiful homes, she co-founded Ideal Properties Group (https://ipg.nyc/), which has now grown into a leading residential real estate firm in New York's Brooklyn neighborhoods.Check out our offerings & partners: ThirdLove: Go to ThirdLove.com/GOODLIFE now to find your perfect fitting bra... and get 15% off your first purchase.Calm: Give yourself the gift of Calm. Seriously, it might change your life. For a limited time, get 25% off a Calm Premium subscription at calm.com/GOODLIFEStitcher: You can now listen to new episodes of the show, completely ad-free, exclusively on Stitcher Premium. Sign up now for a free month of Stitcher Premium by going to stitcherpremium.com/wondery and using the promo code ‘WONDERY.’ Then once you’re signed up, just download the Stitcher app for iOS or Android and start listening.Uber Rewards: Earn points on Rides and Uber Eats. Learn more about all the ways you can earn at Uber.com/rewards