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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
Homeprison

prison

*Highlight

Youth from Favela Mistakenly Arrested: ‘Willian, This Community Has No Doubt, You Are Innocent’

By Luisa Fenizola • Translation by Desirée Poets • September 27, 2018

Clique aqui para Português Willian Preciliano is a young 21-year-old man from Morro dos Prazeres, a favela above Rio’s historic Santa Teresa neighborhood. In July, he finished high school and his parents gave him the […]

#MarielleLegacy

Countdown to Brazil’s 2018 Elections, Part 6: Growth and Diversity of Favela Candidates

By Luisa Fenizola • Translation by Sharon Gogar • September 18, 2018

Clique aqui para Português This is the sixth article in an ongoing series on the Brazilian electoral political scene in 2018. The immediate reaction to the death of Marielle Franco, beyond deep pain, was the strengthening of […]

*Highlight

‘Black July’ Organizers Unite Against Racism, Militarization in Latin America, Africa, Middle East

By Paula Peña • June 25, 2018

Clique aqui para Português It’s 3pm on a cloudy Saturday and, as more people file through the entrance of Instituto Raízes em Movimento (Roots in Movement Institute) in Complexo do Alemão, what initially seemed like a […]

Nem after his arrest in 2011. Photo by A/A Beatriz / Reuters
#InterventionWatch

‘I Don’t Regret Being a Drug Trafficker. What Would You Do In My Place?’ – Rocinha’s Nem

By Gil Alessi • Translation by Cheyne Bull • April 2, 2018

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Gil Alessi published by EL PAÍS click here. “E2 pawn to E4,” shouts Antônio Bonfim Lopes, 41, from his seven-square-meter cell at the Porto […]

#UPPWatch

The Power of Crime: Ties Between Drug Trafficking and Politics in Brazil [INTERVIEW | VIDEO]

By Flávio Costa, Vinícius Andrade • Translation by Arman Kazemi • January 8, 2018

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Flávio Costa and Vinícius Andrade published by UOL Notícias click here. Filmed interviews in Portuguese with Marcinho VP available at the end of the article […]

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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.
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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
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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
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