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Latest News
  • [ 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] by Community Contributors
  • [ 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
  • [ 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
HomeWritersRachael Hilderbrand

Writer: Rachael Hilderbrand

#UPPWatch

Pacifying Police Unit (UPP) Installations Part 1: 2008-2010

By Patrick Ashcroft, Rachael Hilderbrand • January 7, 2015

Clique aqui para Português This is Part 1 in a five-part series documenting Pacifying Police Unit (UPP) Installations.  Rio de Janeiro’s Pacifying Police Unit (UPP) program was initiated in late 2008; today units have been installed in 38 […]

Perceptions

World Cup Fans Share Perceptions of Rio’s Favelas

By Rachael Hilderbrand • July 10, 2014

Soccer fans from all over the world have gathered in Rio de Janeiro during the World Cup. RioOnWatch asked visiting fans at the popular FIFA FanFest on Copacabana Beach about their perceptions of Rio’s favelas, […]

#GentrificationWatch

Vidigal Debates Gentrification and the Community’s Future in Second “Fala Vidigal” Event

By Rachael Hilderbrand • April 30, 2014

Clique aqui para Português On Tuesday April 8, Vidigal hosted the second of four debates in the “Fala Vidigal” series. Organized by the Vila Vidigal Neighborhood Association, Catalytic Communities, the Intersectoral Forum of Vidigal, the Albergue da Comunidade, and Vidblog Vidigal the […]

#UPPWatch

UPP Violence in Pavão-Pavãozinho/Cantagalo Comes to a Head Following Death of Dancer DG

By Rachael Hilderbrand • April 26, 2014

An increase of violence in Pavão-Pavãozinho and Cantagalo over recent months–neighboring favelas located above the beachside neighborhoods of Ipanema and Copacabana in Rio’s South Zone–combined with the high profile death of a widely known and loved young man this […]

Interviews & Profiles

Meet Cíntia Luna, President of AMUST from Morro do Fogueteiro

By Rachael Hilderbrand • Translation by Lucy McMahon • April 25, 2014

Clique aqui para Português Cíntia Luna, 35 years old, current President of the Santa Teresa United Neighborhood Association (AMUST), has played a leadership role in the development of the association over the past eight years. A […]

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.
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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
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  • Policies
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    • Housing
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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
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      • Energy Justice Series
    • Event Reports
    • Video Stories
    • Photo-Essays
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