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This past October on Lifou, a traditional twin-hulled vessel was pushed into the turquoise waters – a small act that represented a deeply symbolic moment.

It was the first launch of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in living memory, an event that assembled the island’s three chiefly clans in a uncommon display of togetherness.

Seafarer and campaigner Aile Tikoure was the driving force behind the launch. For the past eight years, he has spearheaded a program that aims to revive traditional boat making in New Caledonia.

Numerous traditional boats have been built in an project designed to reconnect local Kanak populations with their maritime heritage. Tikoure states the boats also help the “beginning of dialogue” around maritime entitlements and environmental policies.

International Advocacy

This past July, he journeyed to France and met President Emmanuel Macron, calling for marine policies created in consultation with and by Indigenous communities that recognise their maritime heritage.

“Our ancestors always navigated the ocean. We forgot that knowledge for a period,” Tikoure states. “Today we’re reclaiming it again.”

Heritage boats hold significant historical meaning in New Caledonia. They once symbolised travel, interaction and clan alliances across islands, but those practices diminished under colonisation and outside cultural pressures.

Heritage Restoration

This mission began in 2016, when the New Caledonia government’s culture department was considering how to bring back traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure worked with the authorities and two years later the boat building initiative – known as the Kenu Waan initiative – was born.

“The biggest challenge didn’t involve cutting down trees, it was convincing people,” he says.

Project Achievements

The program aimed to restore ancestral sailing methods, mentor apprentice constructors and use boat-building to enhance community pride and island partnerships.

So far, the group has organized a showcase, issued a volume and supported the building or renovation of nearly three dozen boats – from the southern region to the northern shoreline.

Resource Benefits

Different from many other oceanic nations where tree loss has limited wood resources, New Caledonia still has suitable wood for crafting substantial vessels.

“In other places, they often work with modern composites. Locally, we can still work with whole trees,” he says. “That represents a significant advantage.”

The boats created under the program integrate traditional boat forms with local sailing systems.

Educational Expansion

Starting recently, Tikoure has also been educating students in navigation and traditional construction history at the educational institution.

“For the first time ever this knowledge are included at graduate studies. This isn’t academic – this is knowledge I’ve experienced. I’ve crossed oceans on these canoes. I’ve experienced profound emotion while accomplishing this.”

Island Cooperation

He traveled with the team of the Uto ni Yalo, the Pacific vessel that sailed to Tonga for the regional gathering in 2024.

“From Hawaii to Rapa Nui, from Fiji to here, this represents a unified effort,” he says. “We’re taking back the sea as a community.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure visited the French city to share a “Traditional understanding of the ocean” when he conferred with Macron and government representatives.

Addressing official and foreign officials, he advocated for cooperative sea policies based on Kanak custom and participation.

“You have to involve these communities – most importantly people dependent on marine resources.”

Current Development

Currently, when navigators from various island nations – from Fiji, the Micronesian region and Aotearoa – arrive in Lifou, they analyze boats together, modify the design and eventually sail side by side.

“We don’t just copy the ancient designs, we make them evolve.”

Holistic Approach

In his view, educating sailors and promoting conservation measures are linked.

“The core concept concerns public engagement: who is entitled to move across the sea, and who determines which activities take place on it? The canoe serve as a method to start that conversation.”