Global Importance 

The Metepantle system offers a powerful example of long-term agricultural resilience in fragile mountain environments. Practiced for over three millennia, it preserves biodiversity and ecosystem functions through traditional knowledge, community stewardship, and agroecological design. It contributes to global goals for sustainable food systems, land restoration, and climate adaptation, showing how Indigenous Peoples’ food systems can regenerate soil, conserve water, and maintain food production in the face of modern environmental pressures. Its genetic wealth, cultural heritage, and landscape management make it a living classroom for sustainability rooted in history.  

Food and Livelihood Security 

This system provides diverse and nutritious food throughout the year. Crops like maize, beans, squash, quelites (edible wild greens), and amaranth meet household needs, while agave adds value through the production of pulque, mead, and syrup. Farmers also use agave flowers and leaves in traditional cuisine and harvest fruits, forage, and medicinal plants from surrounding areas. Together, these practices reduce dependence on external inputs and markets. Income from local sales, food processing, and artisanal beverages adds financial resilience. By supporting food access, crop diversity, and community markets, the system strengthens both nutrition and livelihoods. 

Agrobiodiversity 

Metepantle fields are home to over 140 cultivated and wild species. Farmers maintain dozens of maize landraces, beans, native greens, and multiple agave varieties, each adapted to different microclimates and soils. Intercropping creates beneficial plant relationships and natural pest control, while terraces and fallow areas support habitat diversity. Agave plays a central ecological role—stabilizing slopes, retaining water, and feeding pollinators. Wild edible and medicinal plants are integrated into production systems. This dynamic biodiversity supports food security, ecological stability, and the preservation of genetic resources vital for adapting to future climate conditions. 

Local and Traditional Knowledge Systems 

The Metepantle system is guided by centuries of observation and adaptation. Farmers use traditional calendars, lunar cycles, and environmental signals to plan planting, harvest, and pruning. Knowledge of agave management, soil classification, water movement, and seed selection is passed through generations and embedded in daily life resulting in an intricately interconnected system where functionalities are harmonized and decisions are guided by tradition and ecological awareness—ultimately contributing to a resilient and sustainable food system. Tools such as the jima and practices like capado reflect precision and respect. Community seed fairs, women’s roles in seed care, and local learning spaces ensure that knowledge is shared and renewed. These practices form a complete agroecological system based on cultural memory and continuous learning. 

Cultures, Value Systems, and Social Organizations 

At the heart of Metepantle farming is a worldview that sees land and plants as living relatives. Maize and agave are honored in ceremonies, songs, and seasonal rituals that connect farming with spiritual life. Traditional values like reciprocity, mutual aid, and shared governance support community decision-making and ensure collective care for resources. Seed exchange, communal planting, and storytelling are part of the system’s social fabric. These cultural values sustain not only the landscape, but the communities that steward it—linking food, land, and identity across generations. 

Landscapes and Waterscapes Features 

The Metepantle system transforms steep terrain into productive, resilient landscapes. Dry-stone terraces prevent erosion and slow water runoff. Agave hedges function as living barriers, stabilizing soil and capturing moisture. Water is stored in traditional catchments such as jagüeyes and directed through infiltration channels. Crops are arranged vertically and spatially to optimize sunlight, water, and nutrients. These elements create a patchwork of forest, field, and wild corridor, each playing a role in sustaining the land. The result is not just an agricultural system, but a shaped landscape that balances agricultural productivity with environmental sustainability.