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Latest News
  • [ January 29, 2026 ] ‘It’s the Place of Resistance of Our Existence’: Duque de Caxias’ Culture Manor is a Hub for Art, Education and Leisure by Community Contributors
  • [ January 13, 2026 ] 10 Years Since the Rio Olympics: Vila Autódromo Continues to Resist Gentrification Pressures Amidst New ‘Olympic Barra’ Neighborhood #EvictionsWatch
  • [ January 8, 2026 ] COP30 Civil Society Rundown: Thousands of Communities and Social Movements, Representing Favelas, Indigenous, Quilombola and Other Marginalized Groups Fill Belém During COP30 [IMAGES] *Highlight
  • [ December 31, 2025 ] ‘What We Want Aren’t Bodies on the Ground… It’s Recognition of [Our] People Creating Solutions’: Penha Favelas Hold Composters and Integrated Health Events Highlighting Local Climate Memories *Highlight
  • [ December 26, 2025 ] 2025 Retrospective of Top International Reporting on Rio’s Favelas #MediaWatch
HomeObservatório de Favelas

Observatório de Favelas

*Highlight

Turning Affection Into Film: The Legacy of Cadu Barcellos, a Maré Native Who Brought Dignity to the Favela in Brazilian Film

By Juliana Portella • Translation by Marina Devine Guzmán • August 25, 2025

Clique aqui para Português In the North Zone of Rio de Janeiro, in the group of favelas that make up Complexo da Maré—more precisely, in the Pinheiro favela, Block 7, apartment 502: that’s where Cadu […]

by Community Contributors

Art, Resistance and Ancestral Struggle at Carnival, Part 3: ‘Se Benze Que Dá’ Bloco Closes Maré Favela’s 2024 Carnival

By Tatiana Lima • Translation by Aaron Scott • February 13, 2024

Clique aqui para Português This is the third in a series of three articles about carnival traditions in Rio’s favelas and peripheries, respectively: the Bate-Bola clowns, an indelible tradition in the North and West Zones, […]

Event Reports

RIP ‘Subnormal Agglomerations,’ Part 2: Housing Rights and Favela Stigma in the Official Nomenclature

By Julio Santos Filho • Translation by Nathan Bergrin • November 9, 2023

Clique aqui para Português This is the second article in a series of three about how Brazil’s census bureau, IBGE, held an unprecedented week-long workshop to debate how to change the term “subnormal agglomeration” used […]

*Highlight

RIP ‘Subnormal Agglomerations,’ Part 1: Local Diversity, Strength, and Belonging in a New Official Term

By Julio Santos Filho • Translation by Ezra Spira-Cohen • November 8, 2023

Clique aqui para Português This is the first article in a series of three about how Brazil’s census bureau, IBGE, held an unprecedented week-long workshop to debate how to change the term “subnormal agglomeration” used […]

#CommunityMedia

The Sustainability of Favela Newspapers in Print

By Tatiana Lima • Translation by Liam Aranda • October 13, 2022

Clique aqui para Português From the closing down of printers to the lack of profitability of favela media, grassroots communicators have faced the challenge of keeping community journalism alive in the favelas of Rio de […]

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.

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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
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  • Communities
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  • Policies
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    • 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
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    • Listicles
    • Opinion
    • Reference
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    • Translated Articles
  • About
    • Timeline
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