• English
  • Português
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
RioOnWatch
  • Home
    • Highlighted Stories
    • Understanding Rio
    • Reference Articles
  • Communities
    • Central
    • South Zone
    • North Zone
    • West Zone
    • 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
    • Book Reviews
    • Film Reviews
    • Listicles
    • Opinion
    • Reference
    • Podcasts
    • Translated Articles
  • About
    • Timeline
    • Our Reporting Policy
    • License
    • Feedback
  • For Journos
  • Donate
Latest News
  • [ May 24, 2025 ] The Story Behind Brazil’s First Favela Museum—The Maré Museum—Started With a Community Network and Oral Histories in the 1990s by Community Contributors
  • [ May 22, 2025 ] From Local Conferences to COPs, Decision-Making on Climate Excludes Those Who Hold Critical Knowledge and Are Most Impacted: Indigenous Peoples and Informal Settlements [OPINION] *Highlight
  • [ May 16, 2025 ] Rio’s New ‘Extreme Rainfall Vulnerability Index’, Rio 60ºC, Shows 600,000 Homes at High Risk of Landslides or Flooding *Highlight
  • [ May 9, 2025 ] ‘Trash? Not to Us!’ Environmental Action in Rio Public Housing Complex Denounces Municipal Neglect and Proposes Waste Collection as a Source of Income by Community Contributors
  • [ April 30, 2025 ] Sustainable Favela Network Launches Groundbreaking ‘Favela Climate Memory’ Exhibition on May 3, Kicking Off Museums Month [RELEASE] *Highlight
Homegated community

gated community

#MarielleLegacy

Marielle Franco and Sérgio Besserman: Two Sides of the Favela Evictions and Environment Debate

By Lucas Smolcic Larson • June 20, 2018

Clique aqui para Português “The favela is not the problem. The favela is the city. The favela is the solution.” These were Rio City Councilwoman Marielle Franco’s opening remarks as she appeared on an episode of […]

#EvictionsWatch

‘There Will Be No Evictions’: Rio das Pedras Wins One Battle, Faces Another

By Lucas Smolcic Larson, Tyler Strobl • October 30, 2017

Clique aqui para Português Hundreds of people gathered at the Campo do Via Light in the Rio das Pedras favela, in the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro on Thursday, October 26, to hear an important announcement […]

*Highlight

Structural Violence Through the Dangerous ‘Othering’ of Favela Residents

By Christian Kuitert • January 11, 2017

Clique aqui para Português Edward Saïd’s theory of Orientalism offers a useful reference for considering the attitudes of wealthy Brazilians towards favela residents, as well as perhaps the perceptions of non-Brazilians towards Brazilians in general. […]

*Highlight

In Brazil, No One Seems to ‘Earn’ Their Human Rights

By Christian Kuitert • September 12, 2016

Clique aqui para Português Human rights by definition should, well, be applied to all humans. In practice, however, they are distributed unevenly and sometimes even regarded as something “deserved” only by some. In a series of interviews with […]

Asa Branca vs Ilha Pura [Ilha Pura image from Vice]
#Rio2016

Asa Branca Wins the Gold! Is a Rio Favela Greener Than the LEED-Certified Olympic Village?

By Eliot Allen, Julia Jones • August 3, 2016

Clique aqui para Português The Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro are almost upon us, yet the city’s lack of preparedness continues to provide international media with an endless feed of concerning stories. The most […]

Posts pagination

1 2 »

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.

Contact & Support

contact@rioonwatch.org
WhatsApp +55.21.991.976.444
USA VOIP +1.301.637.7360

Volunteer | Donate

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

  • Home
    • Highlighted Stories
    • Understanding Rio
    • Reference Articles
  • Communities
    • Central
    • South Zone
    • North Zone
    • West Zone
    • 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
    • Book Reviews
    • Film Reviews
    • Listicles
    • Opinion
    • Reference
    • Podcasts
    • Translated Articles
  • About
    • Timeline
    • Our Reporting Policy
    • License
    • Feedback
  • For Journos
  • Donate

© 2025 Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International