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Latest News
  • [ May 15, 2026 ] Complex and Intelligent, the Favela Has Its Own Geography Favela Qualities
  • [ May 14, 2026 ] ‘This Is Where My Life Began:’ Residents of Santa Teresa Occupation Claim Right to Stay in Talks With Federal Heritage Secretariat #EvictionsWatch
  • [ May 13, 2026 ] 10 Years After Rio’s Most Notorious Pre-Olympic Forced Eviction, Women-Led Collective Action Preserves the Memory of Vila Autódromo #LegacyWatch
  • [ May 9, 2026 ] Data Centers, AI and the Social Costs for Rio de Janeiro: What Does It Mean in Practice to Become a Big Tech Hub? [EDITORIAL] #LegacyWatch
  • [ April 28, 2026 ] The Who and Why of Sustainability: Without Retraining, Waste Pickers Have Been on Losing End of Greenwashing 14 Years After Closing of ‘Waste Land’ Dump *Highlight
Homeequality

equality

#ParticipationWatch

Representation Matters: Victories and Contradictions in Lula’s Transition of Brazil’s New Government Ministries

By Tatiana Lima • Translation by Yasmin Quaife • December 29, 2022

Clique aqui para Português Behind the scenes, Lula’s transition cabinet was charged with including greater numbers of underrepresented groups in federal ministries. Participating in the transition were indigenous intellectuals, quilombolas, Afro-Brazilian men and women, residents […]

*Highlight

A Pyramidal Approach to Upgrading Rio de Janeiro’s Favelas, Part 2: Regularization, Basic Needs, and Community Participation

By Natalia Meléndez Fuentes • September 9, 2020

Clique aqui para Português This is the second article in a six-part series on the application of Meléndez’s Pyramid for Favela Upgrading to the city of Rio de Janeiro and its favelas. This pyramidal concept was […]

*Highlight

A Pyramidal Approach to Upgrading Rio de Janeiro’s Favelas, Part 1: Rethinking Informality Through Placemaking

By Natalia Meléndez Fuentes • January 15, 2020

Clique aqui para Português This is the first article in a six-part series on the application of Meléndez’s Pyramid for Favela Upgrading to the city of Rio de Janeiro and its favelas. This pyramidal concept […]

#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 […]

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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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

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