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In October on the island of Lifou, a double-hulled canoe was pushed into the lagoon – a small act that represented a highly meaningful moment.

It was the maiden journey of a traditional canoe on Lifou in living memory, an event that assembled the island’s three chiefly clans in a rare show of unity.

Seafarer and campaigner Aile Tikoure was behind the launch. For the previous eight-year period, he has overseen a project that works to resurrect heritage canoe building in New Caledonia.

Numerous traditional boats have been crafted in an project intended to reunite Indigenous Kanak people with their oceanic traditions. Tikoure explains the boats also promote the “beginning of dialogue” around sea access rights and conservation measures.

International Advocacy

During the summer month of July, he visited France and met President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for ocean governance developed alongside and by native populations that honor their connection to the ocean.

“Forefathers always traveled by water. We forgot that knowledge for a period,” Tikoure explains. “Today we’re reclaiming it again.”

Canoes hold deep cultural significance in New Caledonia. They once represented mobility, exchange and family cooperations across islands, but those practices declined under colonisation and religious conversion efforts.

Tradition Revival

This mission started in 2016, when the New Caledonia heritage ministry was exploring how to reintroduce ancestral boat-making techniques. Tikoure worked with the administration and following a two-year period the canoe construction project – known as Project Kenu Waan – was established.

“The biggest challenge was not wood collection, it was convincing people,” he explains.

Program Successes

The program aimed to restore heritage voyaging practices, train young builders and use boat-building to enhance community pride and regional collaboration.

To date, the organization has created a display, issued a volume and supported the creation or repair of nearly three dozen boats – from the far south to Ponerihouen.

Natural Resources

Unlike many other oceanic nations where deforestation has diminished timber supplies, New Caledonia still has proper lumber for carving large hulls.

“Elsewhere, they often employ synthetic materials. Here, we can still carve solid logs,” he says. “It makes all the difference.”

The canoes constructed under the initiative combine traditional boat forms with regional navigation methods.

Teaching Development

Beginning this year, Tikoure has also been educating students in seafaring and heritage building techniques at the local university.

“It’s the first time this knowledge are taught at master’s level. It goes beyond textbooks – these are experiences I’ve experienced. I’ve sailed vast distances on traditional boats. I’ve cried tears of joy while accomplishing this.”

Island Cooperation

He traveled with the team of the Fijian vessel, the heritage craft that sailed to Tonga for the Pacific Islands Forum in 2024.

“From Hawaii to Rapa Nui, through various islands, it’s the same movement,” he says. “We’re reclaiming the ocean together.”

Political Engagement

During the summer, Tikoure journeyed to Nice, France to present a “Indigenous perspective of the ocean” when he conferred with Macron and government representatives.

Before state and international delegates, he pushed for collaborative ocean management based on Indigenous traditions and participation.

“You have to involve these communities – particularly those who live from fishing.”

Current Development

Now, when mariners from throughout the region – from the Fijian islands, the Micronesian region and Aotearoa – arrive in Lifou, they analyze boats together, refine the construction and finally voyage together.

“It’s not about duplicating the ancient designs, we help them develop.”

Holistic Approach

According to Tikoure, teaching navigation and supporting ecological regulations are connected.

“It’s all about community participation: who has the right to travel ocean waters, and who decides what happens in these waters? The canoe serve as a method to begin that dialogue.”