🔗 Share this article

During the autumn month of October on Lifou island, a ancient-style canoe was set afloat in the coastal lagoon – a simple gesture that marked a deeply symbolic moment.

It was the inaugural voyage of a traditional canoe on Lifou in generations, an occasion that assembled the island’s three chiefly clans in a rare show of unity.

Mariner and advocate Aile Tikoure was the driving force behind the launch. For the previous eight-year period, he has led a program that seeks to restore heritage canoe building in New Caledonia.

Many heritage vessels have been built in an effort intended to reunite native Kanak communities with their seafaring legacy. Tikoure says the boats also facilitate the “start of conversation” around maritime entitlements and ecological regulations.

Diplomatic Efforts

This past July, he journeyed to France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for ocean governance shaped with and by native populations that acknowledge their connection to the ocean.

“Forefathers always crossed the sea. We forgot that knowledge for a time,” Tikoure states. “Today we’re reclaiming it again.”

Traditional vessels hold significant historical significance in New Caledonia. They once symbolised travel, trade and tribal partnerships across islands, but those traditions declined under colonial rule and religious conversion efforts.

Heritage Restoration

This mission commenced in 2016, when the New Caledonia government’s culture department was considering how to reintroduce ancestral boat-making techniques. Tikoure worked with the government and after two years the canoe construction project – known as Kenu Waan project – was launched.

“The biggest challenge didn’t involve harvesting timber, it was convincing people,” he explains.

Program Successes

The initiative worked to bring back heritage voyaging practices, train young builders and use boat-building to reinforce cultural identity and island partnerships.

To date, the group has produced an exhibition, issued a volume and supported the creation or repair of approximately thirty vessels – from the southern region to the northeastern coast.

Resource Benefits

Unlike many other Pacific islands where deforestation has limited wood resources, New Caledonia still has appropriate timber for crafting substantial vessels.

“There, they often use marine plywood. Here, we can still work with whole trees,” he states. “This creates a crucial distinction.”

The boats created under the Kenu Waan Project integrate traditional boat forms with local sailing systems.

Teaching Development

Since 2024, Tikoure has also been educating students in navigation and heritage building techniques at the educational institution.

“This marks the initial occasion this knowledge are offered at advanced education. This isn’t academic – this is knowledge I’ve lived. I’ve sailed vast distances on these vessels. I’ve felt overwhelming happiness during these journeys.”

Island Cooperation

Tikoure sailed with the members of the Fijian vessel, the Pacific vessel that journeyed to Tonga for the regional gathering in 2024.

“Throughout the region, through various islands, we’re part of a collective initiative,” he explains. “We’re taking back the sea collectively.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure journeyed to Nice, France to share a “Indigenous perspective of the marine environment” when he met with Macron and additional officials.

Addressing official and overseas representatives, he pushed for shared maritime governance based on Kanak custom and participation.

“You have to involve them – particularly fishing communities.”

Contemporary Evolution

Currently, when navigators from across the Pacific – from the Fijian islands, the Micronesian region and New Zealand – visit Lifou, they study canoes in cooperation, adjust the structure and finally voyage together.

“We don’t just copy the traditional forms, we enable their progression.”

Holistic Approach

According to Tikoure, teaching navigation and advocating environmental policy are connected.

“The fundamental issue involves public engagement: who is entitled to navigate marine territories, and who determines what happens in these waters? Heritage boats function as a means to begin that dialogue.”