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Latest News
  • [ January 29, 2026 ] ‘It’s the Place of Resistance of Our Existence’: Duque de Caxias’ Culture Manor is a Hub for Art, Education and Leisure by Community Contributors
  • [ January 13, 2026 ] 10 Years Since the Rio Olympics: Vila Autódromo Continues to Resist Gentrification Pressures Amidst New ‘Olympic Barra’ Neighborhood #EvictionsWatch
  • [ January 8, 2026 ] COP30 Civil Society Rundown: Thousands of Communities and Social Movements, Representing Favelas, Indigenous, Quilombola and Other Marginalized Groups Fill Belém During COP30 [IMAGES] *Highlight
  • [ December 31, 2025 ] ‘What We Want Aren’t Bodies on the Ground… It’s Recognition of [Our] People Creating Solutions’: Penha Favelas Hold Composters and Integrated Health Events Highlighting Local Climate Memories *Highlight
  • [ December 26, 2025 ] 2025 Retrospective of Top International Reporting on Rio’s Favelas #MediaWatch
HomeDrug Traffic

Drug Traffic

Policies

Up the Alley and in the Auditorium: Reflections on Police Violence

By Michael Richmond • July 5, 2013

Tucked away down a small, anonymous side street in Rio’s downtown bohemian neighborhood of Lapa, prominent public security expert and author of the Elite Squad books (which became box office hits) Luiz Eduardo Soares began […]

Residents hold signs with the names and ages of those who died as another performs. Photo by Catherine Osborn
Event Reports

Never Again: Maré Remembers 10 Dead in Police Operation

By Felicity Clarke • July 4, 2013

Clique aqui para Português On Tuesday afternoon, July 2, more than 5,000 people united in Maré, Rio’s largest favela complex located in the city’s North Zone, in memorial to the ten people slaughtered in the shocking […]

#EvictionsWatch

The Port’s Discontents

By Claudia Antunes • Translation by Harriet Batey, Jake Cummings, Jason Yu, Jez Smadja, Katy Stone, Luana Gama, Rachel Fox • May 27, 2013

For the original article by Claudia Antunes in Portuguese published in Piauí click here (subscribers only).  An account of the residents’ movement in Rio de Janeiro’s first favela in an era of sporting mega-events and political […]

#Rio2016

Rio Academia Discusses Influence of UPP Pacification on Favela Youth

By Sophie Snowden • May 22, 2013

Last Friday morning, May 17, nearly 100 students, researchers and scholars gathered at the State University of Rio de Janeiro’s (UERJ) Social and Policy Studies Institute (IESP) in Botafogo to discuss the Pacifying Police Units (UPP), youth and […]

Bira's work equipment, a photographic camera, was found inside the toilet.
Policies

Does Citizenship have a Post Code? Collective Warrants and Illegal Searches in Pre-UPP Maré

By Cecília Olliveira • Translation by Charlotte Livingstone • May 6, 2013

For the original in Portuguese by Cecília Oliveira on Arma Branca click here. Does citizenship have a post code? This question may seem absurd for some, yet spot-on for others, and it is what favela […]

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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

contact@rioonwatch.org
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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
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  • Communities
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  • 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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