Background
Maré ranks 123rd out of 126 Rio de Janeiro neighbourhoods in the Human Development Index, with community facing low levels of education, high levels of unemployment and extremely high levels of drug gang and state violence. Luta Pela Paz uses boxing and martial arts combined with education and personal development to realise the potential of young people in communities affected by crime and violence. They work with youth in Maré favela, where they use a methodology that provides a series of holistic and integrated services to give young people the tools to build peaceful, positive and productive lives.