Located in the Sierra Norte region of the State of Puebla, in a region with high levels of inequality and marginalisation, Cuetzalan is an icon of social and economic innovation through cooperative and social organisation experiences that promote the empowerment of people who fight against the rural-poverty binomial. Cuetzalan is a rural locality that received national recognition as a Magic Village in 2002, thanks to the focus on social, economic and environmental sustainability that made its cultural and natural heritage shine.

Surrounded by mesophilic mountain forests, waterfalls and enveloped in the mysticism of the Nahua people’s cosmovision (indigenous people inhabiting the region), Cuetzalan can boast many agricultural activities such as the production of shade-grown coffee, the harvesting of black pepper, the production of vanilla orchids and the ancestral production of Melipona honey.

The demand of these agri-food products is strictly related to tourism, which is also a support for the preservation of typical mountain gastronomy, which includes different wild herbs, smoked meats and bitter liquors that contribute to stimulating local economies that provide the inhabitants with more dignified and fairer work opportunities.

In 2020, the village could count 79,300 arrivals among national and international tourists, generating an important economic income, which represents the majority of the Municipality’s income. In order to minimise the impacts and externalities of tourism and to encourage co-responsibility between visitors and residents, the local community has been implementing different ecotourism and cultural tourism initiatives. In addition, the presence of two universities has influenced the quality and structure of the projects.