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During the autumn month of October on Lifou, a traditional twin-hulled vessel was pushed into the coastal lagoon – a seemingly minor event that represented a profoundly important moment.

It was the inaugural voyage of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in living memory, an event that brought together the island’s main family lineages in a exceptional demonstration of solidarity.

Seafarer and campaigner Aile Tikoure was the driving force behind the launch. For the previous eight-year period, he has overseen a project that seeks to restore traditional boat making in New Caledonia.

Many heritage vessels have been built in an project intended to reunite local Kanak populations with their oceanic traditions. Tikoure says the boats also promote the “beginning of dialogue” around maritime entitlements and conservation measures.

Global Outreach

In July, he travelled to France and met President Emmanuel Macron, advocating for maritime regulations developed alongside and by local tribes that acknowledge their relationship with the sea.

“Forefathers always crossed the sea. We forgot that knowledge for a time,” Tikoure says. “Currently we’re rediscovering it again.”

Heritage boats hold profound traditional importance in New Caledonia. They once symbolised movement, trade and clan alliances across islands, but those practices diminished under foreign occupation and outside cultural pressures.

Tradition Revival

The initiative commenced in 2016, when the New Caledonia government’s culture department was exploring how to reintroduce heritage vessel construction methods. Tikoure collaborated with the authorities and two years later the boat building initiative – known as Kenu Waan project – was born.

“The hardest part was not harvesting timber, it was convincing people,” he explains.

Project Achievements

The program sought to revive heritage voyaging practices, mentor apprentice constructors and use vessel construction to enhance cultural identity and inter-island cooperation.

So far, the organization has organized a showcase, published a book and supported the construction or restoration of approximately thirty vessels – from the southern region to the northern shoreline.

Natural Resources

In contrast to many other oceanic nations where deforestation has diminished timber supplies, New Caledonia still has appropriate timber for crafting substantial vessels.

“In other places, they often use synthetic materials. Locally, we can still work with whole trees,” he explains. “This creates all the difference.”

The canoes constructed under the Kenu Waan Project combine oceanic vessel shapes with local sailing systems.

Teaching Development

Starting recently, Tikoure has also been teaching seafaring and ancestral craft methods at the educational institution.

“This marks the initial occasion these topics are taught at graduate studies. This isn’t academic – these are experiences I’ve lived. I’ve sailed vast distances on these vessels. I’ve experienced profound emotion doing it.”

Island Cooperation

He traveled with the crew of the Fijian vessel, the Fijian canoe that traveled to Tonga for the Pacific Islands Forum in 2024.

“From Hawaii to Rapa Nui, including our location, we’re part of a collective initiative,” he says. “We’re reclaiming the sea together.”

Policy Advocacy

In July, Tikoure travelled to Nice, France to introduce a “Indigenous perspective of the sea” when he met with Macron and government representatives.

In front of government and foreign officials, he argued for shared maritime governance based on Indigenous traditions and participation.

“It’s essential to include them – especially those who live from fishing.”

Contemporary Evolution

Today, when mariners from across the Pacific – from the Fijian islands, Micronesia and Aotearoa – come to Lifou, they study canoes collectively, adjust the structure and ultimately navigate in unison.

“We’re not simply replicating the ancient designs, we enable their progression.”

Holistic Approach

According to Tikoure, teaching navigation and promoting conservation measures are linked.

“It’s all about public engagement: who has the right to move across the sea, and who determines which activities take place there? Traditional vessels serve as a method to start that conversation.”