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Latest News
  • [ December 4, 2025 ] Portrait of a Centenary-Old Favela of Stilt Houses: Belém’s Vila da Barca Resists, Organizes and Fights for Sanitation and Adequate Housing #HousingWatch
  • [ November 30, 2025 ] The Story of Dona Pascoalina, Midwife and Healer of Morro do Borel by Community Contributors
  • [ November 15, 2025 ] ‘There’s No Such Thing as Normal After a Massacre’: One Week After Police Mega-Operation Kills 121 People, Residents From Complexos do Alemão and Penha Speak Out #UPPWatch
  • [ November 13, 2025 ] ‘Human Beings Forget That They Are Nature’: Favelas Teach the Path to the Future at the 2nd Favela Sustainability Festival Civil Society
  • [ November 12, 2025 ] Food Sovereignty and Culinary Heritage Connect with Fight for Climate Justice at the 2nd Sustainable Favela Festival Civil Society
Homeland rights

land rights

#GentrificationWatch

Favela Community Land Trusts, Part 1: Understanding the Idea and Possibilities for Favelas

By Priscilla Mayrink, Tarcyla Fidalgo • Translation by Habib Msallem • September 26, 2018

Clique aqui para Português This is the first article in a four-part series on the potential to apply the Community Land Trust (CLT) model under existing Brazilian laws to secure land rights in Brazil’s favelas. The series was […]

*Highlight

Breaking Down the Discourse of Informality: Are Favelas Really ‘Informal’ Settlements?

By Priscilla Mayrink • Translation by Cheyne Bull • August 29, 2018

Clique aqui para Português Defining a favela is a difficult task. Residents and researchers have identified the many differences that exist both between and within favelas to make us break away from generalizations and common […]

#HousingWatch

The Diversity and Global Applicability of the Community Land Trust Model, from Boston to Kenya

By Victoria Fanibi • August 15, 2018

Clique aqui para Português A Community Land Trust (CLT) is a community-managed nonprofit organization or association established to provide permanent affordable housing and build community assets in the territory that it owns and governs. CLTs […]

#HousingWatch

Two Years After Rio Olympics, Vila Autódromo Celebrates ‘Glorious Victory,’ Looks Toward the Future

By Adam Talbot • August 11, 2018

Clique aqui para Português On August 5, 2016, the Olympic Games began in Rio de Janeiro. As teargas choked protesting activists outside Maracanã Stadium, a tiny fraction of the original residents of Vila Autódromo were busy moving into […]

Maria Haydée Alves da Silva, lifelong resident of Vila Hípica
#EvictionsWatch

After 5 Years, Vila Hípica Still Without Electricity in ‘Passive’ Eviction by Federal Authorities

By Tyler Strobl • August 8, 2018

Clique aqui para Português In 2013, the lights were shut off in Vila Hípica, a community settled high in the mountains of Rio de Janeiro’s Tijuca National Park in Alto da Boa Vista. Approximately five years later, […]

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RioOnWatch’s anti-racist reporting series won silver in the 2022 inaugural The Anthem Awards, in the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion category among Best Local Awareness Programs.
A Project of

About

In May 2010, Catalytic Communities launched what was originally Rio Olympics Neighborhood Watch (hence RioOnWatch), a program to bring visibility to favela community voices in the lead-up to the 2016 Rio Olympics. This news site, RioOnWatch.org, grew into a much-needed and unique reference featuring favela perspectives on the urban transformation of Rio. With diverse and deeply interlinked articles by a mix of community reporters, resident opinions, solidarity reporters, international observers, and academic researchers, we work to engender a more accurate picture of favelas, their contributions to the city, and the potential of favela-led community development in Rio and around the world.

Contact & Support

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10 Years! Check Out Our Story:

Awards

Special Thanks

Fundação Heinrich Böll Brasil
World Habitat
Fideicomiso de la Tierra Caño Martín Peña
Pastoral de Favelas
Center for CLT Innovation
Global Land Alliance
Ecocity Builders
Mansueto Institute for Urban Innovation
SDSU Behner Stiefel Center
The Rio Times
Forum Grita Baixada
Beto Paixão Graphic Design
Architecture Museum of Vienna
Yale School of Architecture

  • Home
    • Highlighted Stories
    • Understanding Rio
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  • Communities
    • Central
    • South Zone
    • North Zone
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    • Greater Rio
  • Policies
    • Public Security
    • Housing
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Health
    • Sanitation
  • Violations
    • Human Rights
    • Housing Rights
    • Police Violence
    • Government Neglect
  • Organizing
    • Community Organizing
    • Community Solution
    • Resistance
    • Sustainability
    • Participation
    • Protest
    • Culture
    • Responsible Tourism
  • Content Map
    • by Community Contributors
    • by Int’l Observers
    • Series
      • Anti-Racist Series
      • Energy Justice Series
    • Event Reports
    • Video Stories
    • Photo-Essays
    • Interviews/Profiles
    • Research & Analysis
    • Reviews
    • Listicles
    • Opinion
    • Reference
    • Podcasts
    • Translated Articles
  • About
    • Timeline
    • Our Reporting Policy
    • License
    • Feedback
  • For Journos
  • Donate

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