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This past October on Lifou island, a double-hulled canoe was launched into the turquoise waters – a small act that signified a deeply symbolic moment.

It was the maiden journey of a heritage boat on Lifou in living memory, an occasion that united the island’s primary tribal groups in a uncommon display of togetherness.

Mariner and advocate Aile Tikoure was behind the launch. For the past eight years, he has led a program that seeks to restore ancestral vessel construction in New Caledonia.

Many heritage vessels have been crafted in an effort intended to reunite native Kanak communities with their seafaring legacy. Tikoure explains the boats also promote the “start of conversation” around sea access rights and conservation measures.

International Advocacy

This past July, he travelled to France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for marine policies shaped with and by native populations that recognise their connection to the ocean.

“Previous generations always navigated the ocean. We abandoned that practice for a while,” Tikoure explains. “Today we’re reclaiming it again.”

Traditional vessels hold profound traditional importance in New Caledonia. They once represented travel, trade and tribal partnerships across islands, but those customs diminished under foreign occupation and outside cultural pressures.

Heritage Restoration

His journey started in 2016, when the New Caledonia government’s culture department was looking at how to restore traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure worked with the government and after two years the boat building initiative – known as Project Kenu Waan – was launched.

“The hardest part was not wood collection, it was convincing people,” he notes.

Initiative Accomplishments

The initiative worked to bring back traditional navigation techniques, mentor apprentice constructors and use boat-building to strengthen traditional heritage and inter-island cooperation.

So far, the team has created a display, released a publication and supported the construction or restoration of approximately thirty vessels – from the southern region to the northeastern coast.

Material Advantages

Unlike many other Pacific islands where tree loss has limited lumber availability, New Caledonia still has proper lumber for constructing major boats.

“In other places, they often employ marine plywood. In our location, we can still craft from natural timber,” he states. “This creates a significant advantage.”

The canoes constructed under the program integrate traditional boat forms with regional navigation methods.

Teaching Development

Starting recently, Tikoure has also been teaching maritime travel and heritage building techniques at the educational institution.

“This marks the initial occasion this knowledge are offered at master’s level. This isn’t academic – this is knowledge I’ve lived. I’ve crossed oceans on these vessels. I’ve experienced profound emotion while accomplishing this.”

Pacific Partnerships

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

“From Hawaii to Rapa Nui, including our location, this represents a unified effort,” he states. “We’re reclaiming the sea as a community.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure visited the French city to share a “Kanak vision of the ocean” when he met with Macron and additional officials.

In front of government and international delegates, he argued for cooperative sea policies based on Indigenous traditions and participation.

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

Current Development

Today, when navigators from various island nations – from Fiji, the Micronesian region and Aotearoa – visit Lifou, they examine vessels together, adjust the structure and eventually sail side by side.

“We don’t just copy the ancient designs, we enable their progression.”

Holistic Approach

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

“The fundamental issue involves how we involve people: who has the right to move across the sea, and what authority governs what happens on it? Traditional vessels serve as a method to begin that dialogue.”