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Latest News
  • [ February 20, 2026 ] Brazil Elections 2026: Favela Communicators Fight Misinformation and Digital Vulnerability #CommunityMedia
  • [ 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
HomeCulture

Culture

*Highlight

Queens from the Favelas: Meet Homegrown Rhythm Section Queens Upholding Black, Peripheral and Female Leadership in Rio’s Carnival

By Amanda Baroni Lopes • Translation by Staff • February 13, 2026

Clique aqui para Português In Rio de Janeiro’s 2026 Carnival, RioOnWatch highlights the only two “rainhas de bateria,” rhythm section queens, who hail from the favelas where their samba schools are located. Leading the rhythm […]

*Highlight

In Serrinha Favela, Kids Make Things Happen! Community Project ‘Mulecada Que Agita’ Continues the Legacy of Generations of Sambistas and Jongueiros [INTERVIEW]

By Rhuan Gonçalves • Translation by Staff • February 11, 2026

Clique aqui para Português This 2026 Rio de Janeiro carnival, RioOnWatch paid a visit to the traditional, century-old Serrinha favela to get to know the Mulecada Que Agita project by interviewing its founders and members. […]

by Community Contributors

‘It’s the Place of Resistance of Our Existence’: Duque de Caxias’ Culture Manor is a Hub for Art, Education and Leisure

By Fabio Leon • Translation by Marina Devine Guzmán • January 29, 2026

Clique aqui para Português Rap battles, DJ-led workshops, rock concerts, festas juninas (traditional June Festivals), Halloween parties, English classes and political meetings to decide the city’s future. In recent years, a bit of everything has […]

by Community Contributors

‘We’ll Only Succeed If We Work Together. On Our Own, We’re Weak’: Collective Action Revives Green Space in Complexo da Coreia

By Bárbara Dias • Translation by Staff • September 30, 2025

Clique aqui para Português On September 21, Complexo da Coreia, a group of favelas in Senador Camará, in Rio de Janeiro’s West Zone, carried out a collective cleanup in the green area of Caminho Anes […]

Civil Society

Favela ‘Inclusion Project’ Transforms Lives Through Love of Others, Education, Sports and Culture [PROFILE]

By Pauline Okyere • September 15, 2025

Clique aqui para Português This article is part of a series of profiles of initiatives in Rio de Janeiro’s Sustainable Favela Network. Initiative: Inclusion Project (Projeto Inclusão) Contact: Facebook | Instagram | WhatsApp +55 (21) 964686394 and 976688714 […]

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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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
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    • South Zone
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  • 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
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    • Translated Articles
  • About
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