Rio de Janeiro's favelas are social ecosystems of great complexity involving intricate border relations between internal communities inhabiting the hills and outskirts of the city and the mainstream "asphalt" characterised mainly by affluent neighbourhoods along the sea. Further complexity is added to this dynamics of inside/outside relations by the various collective actors that operate inside these communities involving manifold interactions between ' favelados ' (person living in the favela), the state, organised drug cartels and the police. In this context, a research collaboration between LSE, F ederal University of Rio de Janeiro, UNESCO, AfroReggae Brazil and CUFA Brazil is investigating how communities in Rio ' s favelas are: 1) regenerating their public spheres through the arts and cultural activities; 2) challenging segregation by developing self-esteem and self-worth for young people at risk of drugs, violence and criminal faction ' s wars 3) constructing alternatives for the routes of socialization and individuation offered by drug trafficking and 4) producing unusual and determined crossings that seek to bridge and mediate the sharp psychological, social, and economic divides between the favela s and mainstream society.
This paper aimed to present the research and initial findings, reflect on the research process, discuss the challenges and obst acles facing researchers and the potentials for collaboration that emerge out of inter-institutional partnerships that cross boundaries between academic and applied settings. See the Underground Sociabilities website