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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
Homecommunity space

community space

*Highlight

Ancestral Wisdom and Community Ties Flourish in a Favela Community Garden: ‘Recovering Our Ancestry… Integrating with Nature’

By Bárbara Dias • Translation by Fred Hanson • October 31, 2025

Clique aqui para Português The community of Parque Arará, one of the favelas that make up Complexo do Arará in Benfica, Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone, gathered on the morning of October 7 for a […]

#GentrificationWatch

City Tears Down Protective Wall and Exposes Camorim Quilombo Archaeological Site

By Jaqueline Suarez • Translation by Aaron Scott • December 27, 2021

Clique aqui para Português On October 7, a portion of the wall that surrounds the Camorim Quilombo archeological site, in the West Zone of Rio, was torn down. The structure was not a target of […]

Favela Culture

The ‘Citizen Artists’ of Cine & Rock, in Rio das Pedras [PROFILE]

By Sofia Bazin • Translation by Edmund Ruge • February 17, 2020

Clique aqui para Português This article is part of a series of profiles of initiatives in Rio’s Sustainable Favela Network. Initiative: Cine & Rock Contact: Blog | Facebook | Email Year Founded: 2013 Community: Rio das Pedras Mission: To promote […]

*Highlight

4th Sustainable Favela Network Exchange of 2019: History, Art, and Self-Care in Vila Kennedy

By Tara Nelson • September 23, 2019

Clique aqui para Português The Sustainable Favela Network (SFN) is a project of Catalytic Communities (CatComm)* designed to build and reinforce solidarity networks, bring visibility and develop joint actions to support the expansion of community-based initiatives that strengthen environmental […]

*Highlight

Childhood and Collective Learning in the Streets of a Rio Favela

By Gizele Martins • Translation by Leila Lak • September 10, 2019

Clique aqui para Português For the original article in Portuguese by Gizele Martins published in Portal Aprendiz click here. The streets shaped my childhood more than any other place. The streets are a major communal […]

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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
    • 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
    • Feedback
  • For Journos
  • Donate

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