Brazil: Favela pacification at the heart of new violence
Why the much-praised UPP programme seems to be stumbling amid signs of a new spiral of violence.
Brazil: Sojourn in Santarém
Jan Rocha takes a break from her usual razor-sharp analyses of Brazil's political landscape. Yet, even in Santarém, Pará, where the Tapajos river joins...
Rio: from kudos to chaos
In less than three months Rio has passed from the splendour and success of the Olympic and Paralympic Games to a state of public...
Body-mapping in Rio’s favelas
Violations of territories affect women's bodies, just as the violations of women's bodies affect territories. From this premise, women from the Maré favelas of Rio de Janeiro resisting urban violence on a daily basis have found empowerment through the practice of body-mapping.
Colombia: Cali’s community libraries
In summer 2021, a three-month national strike against Ivan Duque's right-wing government proved a remarkable time for movement-building and social change. Silvia reports on the libraries constructed by and for local communities in Cali during this period.
The Spring versus the Buildings
In the Praça (Square) Homero Silva, on Avenida Pompeia, there is a pavement where water tenaciously insists in welling up from underground. Houses...
Bolsonaro won’t help us with coronavirus
Excellent video from The Guardian showing Brazil's favela-dwellers working hard to implement lock-downs and to supply food and essentials to their communities, while President...
Residents denounce crime against the environment
Members of the collective Ocupe e Abrace are opposing a new 22 storey block of flats, to be built next to Praça Homero Silva...
Rio’s rulers behind bars as the 2018 race begins
1 December 2017. Just over a year ago, Rio was on a roll, basking in post-Olympic glory, applauded all over the world for a...
São Paulo: water tankers are the new normal
How long can the authorities dither over the growing water crisis affecting Brazil's southeast?