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This past October on Lifou island, a traditional twin-hulled vessel was launched into the coastal lagoon – a simple gesture that signified a deeply symbolic moment.

It was the inaugural voyage of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in living memory, an gathering that brought together the island’s main family lineages in a rare show of unity.

Activist and sailor Aile Tikoure was instrumental in the launch. For the past eight years, he has spearheaded a project that seeks to restore traditional boat making in New Caledonia.

Numerous traditional boats have been built in an project intended to reunite local Kanak populations with their maritime heritage. Tikoure explains the boats also help the “start of conversation” around maritime entitlements and environmental policies.

Global Outreach

This past July, he journeyed to France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for maritime regulations created in consultation with and by local tribes that acknowledge their maritime heritage.

“Forefathers always navigated the ocean. We lost that for a while,” Tikoure explains. “Today we’re reclaiming it again.”

Traditional vessels hold significant historical significance in New Caledonia. They once symbolised mobility, trade and clan alliances across islands, but those traditions diminished under colonisation and missionary influences.

Tradition Revival

His journey began in 2016, when the New Caledonia heritage ministry was considering how to restore traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure collaborated with the government and two years later the vessel restoration program – known as Project Kenu Waan – was launched.

“The most difficult aspect didn’t involve cutting down trees, it was gaining local support,” he notes.

Program Successes

The initiative worked to bring back heritage voyaging practices, mentor apprentice constructors and use vessel construction to reinforce cultural identity and island partnerships.

So far, the team has organized a showcase, released a publication and enabled the building or renovation of approximately thirty vessels – from the southern region to the northeastern coast.

Material Advantages

Unlike many other Pacific islands where forest clearing has diminished wood resources, New Caledonia still has suitable wood for carving large hulls.

“There, they often work with synthetic materials. Here, we can still craft from natural timber,” he states. “It makes all the difference.”

The vessels built under the program merge oceanic vessel shapes with Melanesian rigging.

Educational Expansion

Beginning this year, Tikoure has also been instructing seafaring and traditional construction history at the local university.

“It’s the first time these topics are taught at master’s level. It goes beyond textbooks – this is knowledge I’ve lived. I’ve sailed vast distances on these canoes. I’ve experienced profound emotion during these journeys.”

Regional Collaboration

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

“Across the Pacific, from Fiji to here, this represents a unified effort,” he says. “We’re restoring the sea together.”

Political Engagement

During the summer, Tikoure journeyed to the French city to share a “Traditional understanding of the sea” when he conferred with Macron and other leaders.

Before state and overseas representatives, he advocated for cooperative sea policies based on Indigenous traditions and community involvement.

“You have to involve local populations – most importantly fishing communities.”

Contemporary Evolution

Today, when sailors from throughout the region – from Fiji, Micronesia and New Zealand – visit Lifou, they study canoes collectively, refine the construction and finally voyage together.

“We’re not simply replicating the old models, we enable their progression.”

Integrated Mission

For Tikoure, instructing mariners and advocating environmental policy are interrelated.

“It’s all about public engagement: who has the right to move across the sea, and who decides which activities take place on it? Heritage boats function as a means to start that conversation.”