BBC, 04/12/2013, By: Amy Mulcair

In the isolated pine- and oak-filled mountains about 60km northwest of Oaxaca City are eight small villages, collectively called Los Pueblos Mancomunados. Most of the inhabitants are Zapotecan and the villages operate under a unique self-ruling co-operative system, where rural life has remained virtually unchanged for hundreds of years.

The land surrounding the villages is also rich in every sense of the word. The forests are abundant with medicinal plants and mushrooms, and the fields produce maize, squash, tomatoes, beans, watercress and potatoes, as well as a large range of fruit. Most crops in the region are sown and harvested by hand, including the small plots that dot the gravity-challenging mountain sides, and farm machinery is a rare sight, with villagers using donkeys, oxen and bulls to plough the crops. Close to the village of Amatlan, a large reserve of gold and silver still sits in a now unused mine.  Ghost-like mounds of powder-like gold can be seen, forever waiting for transportation to the northern Mexican city of San Luis Potosi for refinement.