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Latest News
  • [ May 16, 2025 ] Rio’s New ‘Extreme Rainfall Vulnerability Index’, Rio 60ºC, Shows 600,000 Homes at High Risk of Landslides or Flooding Climate Justice
  • [ 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
  • [ April 20, 2025 ] ‘No One Wants to Hear How Much We Miss Them’: 20 Years After the Baixada Massacre, Families of Victims Report Poor Mental Health and Demand Psychosocial Support from the State #UPPWatch
  • [ April 14, 2025 ] ‘I Was Up All Night, Like Every Summer’: Storm Deepens Climate Anxiety and Sparks Outrage Among Favela Residents Across Greater Rio de Janeiro, Say #VoicesFromSocialMedia #MediaWatch
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Writer: Laura Fairman

Civil Society

Vidigal’s Organic Medicinal Roof and Living Gallery Declared Rio Heritage Site

By Laura Fairman • December 28, 2016

Clique aqui para Português On Niemeyer Avenue at the entrance of Vidigal, in the community’s Human Rights Plaza and at its first kombi and moto-taxi stop, there’s a colorful graffiti wall portraying the community’s history in a sort of territorial museum. […]

Civil Society

2016 Election Reflections: Brazil and the United States

By Laura Fairman • December 3, 2016

Clique aqui para Português The aftermath of the 2016 election season has left voters, pollsters, and the international community alike with plenty of questions. Brazilian citizens went to the polls in October for the first […]

*Highlight

Rio’s Zero Waste Week Convenes Community Environmental Leaders to Share Best Practices

By Laura Fairman • October 31, 2016

Clique aqui para Português Students, professors, professionals, and civil society actors gathered last week in Rio de Janeiro for Semana Lixo Zero, or Zero Waste Week. Led by the non-profit Instituto Lixo Zero Brasil, attendees participated […]

#Rio2016

In the Shadow of the Hill: Film Explores Police Violence and Community Organizing in Rocinha [FILM REVIEW]

By Laura Fairman • October 10, 2016

Clique aqui para Português Dan Jackson’s 2016 feature-length film In the Shadow of the Hill humanizes the very real changes imposed on residents of Rocinha as the city prepared to host the 2014 World Cup […]

#ParticipationWatch

Complexo da Maré Hosts Debate with Rio’s Mayoral Candidates

By Laura Bachmann, Laura Fairman • September 20, 2016

Clique aqui para Português On Thursday, September 15, three mayoral candidates attended a public debate hosted in Complexo da Maré in Rio’s North Zone. The debate was organized by A Maré que Queremos (The Maré That We […]

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.
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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
    • 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

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