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Latest News
  • [ September 13, 2026 ] ‘I Moved Back to the Favela So I Wouldn’t Starve in the Housing Project’: An Ethnographic Account of the Olympic Resettlement Experience in Parque Carioca #EvictionsWatch
  • [ September 7, 2026 ] 2026 Elections: What’s at Stake for Favelas When Brazilians Cast Votes at the Ballot Box? #ParticipationWatch
  • [ August 31, 2026 ] Prior to Elections, Rio de Janeiro State Legislature Revives ‘Wild West Bonus’ and Elects Its Author Chair of Human Rights Commission #UPPWatch
  • [ August 29, 2026 ] ‘I Miss Everything’: Reflections from Conceição Queiroz Ten Years After Being Evicted from Vila Autódromo for the Olympic Games [INTERVIEW] #EvictionsWatch
  • [ August 28, 2026 ] From Concrete to Food: Collective Action Transforms Abandoned Reservoir Into Community Garden in Complexo do Alemão [IMAGES] *Highlight
HomePacifying Police Unit (UPP)

Pacifying Police Unit (UPP)

#UPPWatch

Study Finds: Militias Dominate 45% of Rio’s Favelas

By Gustavo Goulart • Translation by Emma Platais • December 7, 2013

For the original in by Gustavo Goulart in Portuguese in O Globo click here. Militias dominate 454 of the 1,001 favelas located in the Rio de Janeiro municipality. This is one of the findings of research carried […]

#UPPWatch

Confusion Over Future of the UPP Program

By Jornal do Brasil, Marco Antônio Martins • Translation by Kayla Boisvert • November 13, 2013

Rio’s favela pacification policy–whereby specially trained Military Police occupy and then establish Pacifying Police Units (UPPs) to take territorial control over communities previously controlled by drug trafficking gangs or militia–has come under increasing scrutiny in […]

Policies

Shaky Foundations: Brazil’s Citizen Security Paradigm

By Nick Pope • November 10, 2013

As the world’s biggest sporting mega-events draw closer, Brazilian authorities will be expected to ensure borders, ports of entry, and territory are secure from threats and clandestine activity. However, security blunders during the Pope’s visit, […]

Policies

More Than a Quarter of Favela Residents Have Felt Discriminated Against

By Vinícius Lisboa • Translation by Margó Hufstetler • November 6, 2013

For the original by Vinícius Lisboa in Portuguese for Agência Brasil click here.  Around 30% of favela residents in Brazil have suffered prejudice, asserts Favela Data Institute’s first study, “X-Ray of Brazilian Favelas,” released November 4, […]

#GentrificationWatch

The ‘Area of Risk’ Justification for Favela Removals: The Case of Santa Marta

By Charles Heck • October 29, 2013

Clique aqui para Português Favela removals and home demolitions have become controversial elements of urban investment in Rio de Janeiro leading up to the World Cup 2014 and 2016 Olympic Games. Activists in several favelas […]

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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
    • Understanding Rio
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  • Communities
    • Central
    • South Zone
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  • Policies
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    • Housing
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Health
    • Sanitation
  • Violations
    • Human Rights
    • Housing Rights
    • Police Violence
    • Government Neglect
  • Organizing
    • Community Organizing
    • Community Solution
    • Resistance
    • Sustainability
    • Participation
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    • Culture
    • Responsible Tourism
  • Content Map
    • by Community Contributors
    • by Int’l Observers
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      • Energy Justice Series
    • Event Reports
    • Video Stories
    • Photo-Essays
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    • Research & Analysis
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    • Translated Articles
  • About
    • Timeline
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