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Latest News
  • [ August 4, 2026 ] No Power Is Authentic When It Is Based on Exclusion and Silencing: Gender-Based Political Violence Against Black Women in Brazil [OPINION] #ParticipationWatch
  • [ July 31, 2026 ] Addressing False Claims After Community Land Trust Bill Rejected by Rio de Janeiro City Council #GentrificationWatch
  • [ July 30, 2026 ] 10 Years After Rio Olympics: The Persistence of Structural Disinvestment in Rio’s Majority Working-Class Suburbs [OPINION] #LegacyWatch
  • [ July 29, 2026 ] Largest Favela in Niterói, Morro do Preventório, Launches Popular Mapping Initiative to Support Upgrading Policies by Community Contributors
  • [ July 23, 2026 ] Surf Legend Ricardo Bocão’s Enduring Legacy in Rocinha [OBITUARY] *Highlight
Homeheat island

heat island

*Highlight

Eco Ableism in Favelas: People with Disabilities and Atypical Families Speak Out About Challenges, Routines and Survival Strategies

By Ramon Vellasco • Translation by Dani Scott • July 7, 2026

Clique aqui para Português This article is part of a series created in partnership with the Behner Stiefel Center for Brazilian Studies at San Diego State University, to produce articles for the Digital Brazil Project on environmental justice in the favelas […]

*Highlight

Critical Urban Park in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone Is at Risk of Disappearing After Decades of Government Neglect

By Fernanda Delatorre • Translation by Sia Kulkarni • May 30, 2026

Clique aqui para Português This article is part of a series created in partnership with the Behner Stiefel Center for Brazilian Studies at San Diego State University, to produce articles for the Digital Brazil Project on environmental justice in the favelas […]

#ParticipationWatch

Rio Civil Society Forms Front to Defend Trees From City Hall

By Amanda Baroni Lopes • Translation by Vasti Cruz • March 31, 2026

Clique aqui para Português Last November, RioOnWatch reported on the dismantling of the award-winning Reforestation Collective Action Program, a rare example of an effective, historic public policy in the city’s favelas. Now, various movements are […]

*Highlight

Award-Winning Middle School in Penha Favela Hosts Gardening Collective Action Engaging Passionate Young Environmental Leaders

By Amanda Baroni Lopes • Translation by Alyssa Oliver • March 29, 2026

Clique aqui para Português Two years ago, classes at the Brant Horta Technological Municipal School (GET Brant Horta), located in Penha, a complex of favelas and surrounding neighborhoods in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone, resumed […]

by Community Contributors

Wave of Deadly Tree Pruning has Left Jacarepaguá Resident Desperate for Shade: Account Exposes Senseless Loss to Rio’s West Zone

By Magnun Alves • Translation by Nicole Vaiani • March 28, 2026

Clique aqui para Português Concerned with the felling of trees across the Taquara neighborhood, in Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone, not far from where the 2016 Olympics took place, community journalist Magnun Alves shared an […]

Posts pagination

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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.

Contact & Support

contact@rioonwatch.org
WhatsApp +55.21.991.976.444
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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

  • 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
    • Reviews
    • Listicles
    • Opinion
    • Reference
    • Podcasts
    • Translated Articles
  • About
    • Timeline
    • Our Reporting Policy
    • License
    • Feedback
  • For Journos
  • Donate

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