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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
  • [ 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
HomeWhatsApp

WhatsApp

*Highlight

How WhatsApp Turned Brazil’s 2018 Elections Upside-Down: An Autopsy Report

By Marc Cho • November 1, 2018

Clique aqui para Português WhatsApp, the Facebook-owned messaging application, was once seen as a simple means of communicating and sharing information with friends and family. Brazil’s elections, however, showed precisely how as disinformation runs rampant […]

*Highlight

From Flyer to Flyer: An Analysis of the 2018 Elections in the Maré Favelas

By Fernanda Távora, Hannah de Vasconcellos • Translation by Cheyne Bull • October 31, 2018

Clique aqui para Português  For the original article in Portuguese published by data_labe, click here. Reporting by Hannah de Vasconcellos and Fernanda Távora in collaboration with Juliana Marques (data), Pedro Lira (editing), and Giulia Santos (graphics). […]

*Highlight

Broken Connection Part 3: Right to the Internet and Internet for Rights

By data_labe, Escola de Jornalismo Énois • Translation by Desirée Poets • February 7, 2018

Clique aqui para Português This is the third article in a four-part series on Internet access in favelas and urban peripheries in Brazil. Don’t miss parts one and two. For the entire original article in Portuguese […]

#LegacyWatch

A Year of Violent Tragedy Through Human Stories: 2017 in Complexo do Alemão

By Alejandra S. Inzunza, José Luis Pardo • Translation by Sarah Jacobs • January 3, 2018

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Alejandra S. Inzunza and José Luis Pardo published by investigative news agency Agência Pública click here. From the grandmother who can’t fetch her grandkids from […]

#CommunityMedia

Community Leader Uses Social Media to Unite Residents of Vila Cruzeiro

By Fania Rodrigues • Translation by Sarah Jacobs • March 7, 2016

Clique aqui para Português For the original article by Fania Rodrigues in Portuguese published in Brasil de Fato click here. The idea seemed simple: to create a Facebook page to share information among residents of the community […]

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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
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  • Communities
    • Central
    • South 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
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  • For Journos
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