Archintorno is a non-profit organization of young architects based in Naples, that has been promoting initiatives of development cooperation with indigenous communities in the Mexican State of Oaxaca since 2005. These initiatives involve universities, associations, local governments, and professionals in and outside Italy and rely on a didactic format, internationally known as Design-Build Studio, that includes the direct involvement of students from the Schools of Architecture and Engineering in designing and creating buildings in the developing contexts. Our projects aim at using local materials and resources through low-cost, repeatable technologies, that are also consistent with local climate, social, and cultural context. Decisions on how to realize the projects are the result of a careful, shared analysis of lifestyles, housing culture, and local construction techniques. The cultural exchange between students and local populations is another relevant factor playing a major role in these projects. Therefore, in the context of the current debate about different approaches to architectural design in international cooperation, the experience of Archintorno is in close continuity with the local vernacular culture. This article describes the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed approach through the analysis of the three cooperation experiences of Archintorno in Mexico. The topics discussed cover forms of participation and capacity building, project impact on the local community in terms of economic, sociocultural, as well as environmental and landscape aspects, in addition to the transposal of technological and architectural innovations and may represent a starting point for discussion within the context of the community operating in this field.