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Latest News
  • [ February 15, 2026 ] Violent Rains Ravage Rio de Janeiro’s Favelas—Causing Floods and Landslides Ahead of Carnival—Show #VoicesFromSocialMedia #CommunityMedia
  • [ February 13, 2026 ] Queens from the Favelas: Meet Homegrown Rhythm Section Queens Upholding Black, Peripheral and Female Leadership in Rio’s Carnival *Highlight
  • [ February 11, 2026 ] In Serrinha Favela, Kids Make Things Happen! Community Project ‘Mulecada Que Agita’ Continues the Legacy of Generations of Sambistas and Jongueiros [INTERVIEW] *Highlight
  • [ February 9, 2026 ] Solidarity Kitchen and Social Impact School ‘Sweet Memories by Claudia Queiroga’ Feeds Body and Soul in Greater Rio [PROFILE] *Highlight
  • [ 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
HomeSESC

SESC

*Highlight

The Play ‘Pacts to Reforest the Earth’ Portrays 2040 in Rio’s Maré Favela, Where ‘All That Remain Are the Pests and the Power of Ancestral Love’ [REVIEW]

By Karen Fontoura • Translation by Kay Alvito • July 30, 2025

Clique aqui para Português Through dance, music, audiovisual and many laughs, two Black queers stage the end of humanity. Set in 2040, as the post-human era begins, the play raises the questions: what is Complexo […]

#CoronavirusWatch

Activism, Art, and Solidarity Strengthen LGBTI+ Pride in Rio’s Favelas During the Pandemic

By Wilson Saiki Junior • Translation by Carolyn Oliveira • July 17, 2020

Clique aqui para Português This is our latest article on Covid-19 as it impacts Rio de Janeiro’s favelas. Stories marked by successes, survival, struggles, and resistance are experienced by thousands of members of the LGBTI+ […]

*Highlight

BaixadaCine Film Club Looks to Turn Belford Roxo Into the ‘City of Love’ for Film

By Thábara Garcia • Translation by Edmund Ruge • November 11, 2019

Clique aqui para Português Challenges to the production of culture in Brazil have imposed themselves more and more in 2019. In only ten months, we have already heard the announcement of theater closings, the risk […]

*Highlight

The Kennedy Brothers Community Center #SustainableFavelaNetwork [PROFILE]

By Jessica Depies • September 17, 2018

Clique aqui para Português Initiative: The Kennedy Brothers Community Center (Centro Comunitário Irmãos Kennedy – CCIK) Contact: Facebook | Email Year Founded: 1969 / 2010 Community: Vila Kennedy Mission: The Kennedy Brothers Community Center is a nonprofit association managed […]

Civil Society

Community Solutions in the Absence of Morar Carioca in Pica-Pau

By Kathleen Hennessy • May 28, 2013

For the past five years, Irenaldo Honório da Silva, president of the Pica-Pau Residents’ Association, has helped to organize his community in Rio’s North Zone for a day of entertainment in partnership with social and […]

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

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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
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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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