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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 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
HomePacifying Police Unit (UPP)

Pacifying Police Unit (UPP)

#HousingWatch

25 Years On, Seminar Celebrates Favela-Bairro Upgrading Program

By Ben Bildsten, Luisa Fenizola, Zaynah Karem • June 3, 2019

Clique aqui para Português Favela-Bairro was an ambitious program established in 1994 with the aim of upgrading favelas to the status of formal neighborhoods (“bairros” in Portuguese) through infrastructure interventions, public services, public facilities, and […]

*Highlight

Rio de Janeiro: A Laboratory for Political Control [OPINION]

By Gizele Martins • Translation by Sharon Gogar • April 22, 2019

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Gizele Martins* published by Brasil de Fato click here. Favelas and peripheries are authorities’ areas of choice for police to experiment with weapons and […]

*Highlight

Violence in Rio: Security Expert Warns of Return to Old Policies of Confrontation [INTERVIEW]

By Júlia Dias Carneiro • Translation by Sarah Jacobs • March 29, 2019

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Júlia Dias Carneiro published by BBC News Brasil click here. The backdrop in Rio: a shootout in broad daylight on Avenida Brasil left five injured; thirteen […]

*Highlight

If This UPP Were Mine: With an End to Pacification, Residents Dream of Reoccupying Public Spaces

By Luisa Fenizola • Translation by Habib Msallem • March 11, 2019

Clique aqui para Português While the failure of the Pacifying Police Unit (UPP) model had already been signaled years ago by residents, researchers, civil society organizations, and Rio’s violence and mortality rates, only in 2018 did […]

*Highlight

Police Officer Threatens Boy: ‘Killing Your Brother Was a Job Well Done. Grow Up So I Can Kill You Too’

By Leonardo Coelho • Translation by Habib Msallem • February 14, 2019

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Leonardo Coelho published by Ponte Jornalismo click here. Military Police officer threatened eight-year-old boy during operation that left thirteen dead in Rio de Janeiro; mother […]

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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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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
    • North 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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