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  • [ 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
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  • [ 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
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community leader profile

*Highlight

7 Fantastic Afro-Brazilian Women and Their ‘Everyday Politics’ [PROFILE]

By Marcela Lisboa, Thamyra Thamara de Araújo • Translation by Joana Chetwynd • January 22, 2019

Clique aqui para Português For the original articles in Portuguese by Thamyra Thâmara de Araújo and Marcela Lisboa published by Agência Naya on Medium, click here. To listen to the full interviews in Portuguese, click here. […]

#InterventionWatch

Young Leading Human Rights Defenders from Favelas Talk About Marielle Franco

By Matias Maxx • Translation by Jiselle Steele • April 9, 2018

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Matias Maxx published on VICE click here. VICE spoke to black activists and communicators, women, and transgender people from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro […]

*Highlight

Alex Belchior and His Work to Document Memory in Vila Kennedy [INTERVIEW]

By Luisa Fenizola • Translation by Desirée Poets • March 15, 2018

Clique aqui para Português Nominated for the ‘Making a Difference’ Award in the RIO category by the O Globo newspaper, Alex Belchior is a resident of Vila Kennedy, in the West Zone, and currently works as a tour guide […]

#EvictionsWatch

Indigenous Peoples in the Urban Context: José Urutau Guajajara [INTERVIEW]

By Lucas Smolcic Larson • Translation by Rachel Fox • November 13, 2017

Clique aqui para Português José Urutau Guajajara is one of the key leaders in the movement for indigenous rights in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Raised in the Guajajara Village in the Brazilian state of […]

#CommunityMedia

Complexo da Maré’s Gizele Martins Receives Rio’s Highest Honor

By Sidney Magana • September 21, 2017

Clique aqui para Português On Saturday, September 16, activist, community communicator, and Complexo da Maré resident Gizele Martins received the Pedro Ernesto Medal at a ceremony at the Museu da Maré (Maré Museum). The Pedro Ernesto Medal […]

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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.

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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
    • Reference Articles
  • Communities
    • Central
    • South Zone
    • North Zone
    • West Zone
    • 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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