A fifth of Rio de Janeiro's population, or around 1.6 million people, lives in favelas. Ten thousand live on the Morro da Providencia, a hill near the city's central station.

The first favela sprung up here more than a century ago. Now hundreds of houses are threatened with demolition. With Brazil hosting next year's soccer World Cup and the Olympics in 2016, Rio authorities have vowed to pacify the unruly favelas. One of them is Morro da Providencia, which also happens to sit on some of the most valuable real estate in the city.

Global 3000 home page: http://www.dw.de/program/global-3000/s-11487-9798