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During the autumn month of October on Lifou island, a traditional twin-hulled vessel was set afloat in the turquoise waters – a seemingly minor event that represented a profoundly important moment.

It was the inaugural voyage of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in many decades, an event that assembled the island’s main family lineages in a rare show of unity.

Seafarer and campaigner Aile Tikoure was instrumental in the launch. For the last eight years, he has spearheaded a program that aims to revive ancestral vessel construction in New Caledonia.

Dozens of canoes have been crafted in an initiative designed to reconnect Indigenous Kanak people with their oceanic traditions. Tikoure states the boats also promote the “beginning of dialogue” around maritime entitlements and environmental policies.

International Advocacy

This past July, he visited France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for marine policies shaped with and by Indigenous communities that recognise their relationship with the sea.

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

Canoes hold significant historical meaning in New Caledonia. They once represented travel, interaction and family cooperations across islands, but those practices declined under colonial rule and outside cultural pressures.

Heritage Restoration

This mission began in 2016, when the New Caledonia cultural authorities was exploring how to restore heritage vessel construction methods. Tikoure partnered with the government and following a two-year period the canoe construction project – known as Project Kenu Waan – was established.

“The biggest challenge was not harvesting timber, it was convincing people,” he explains.

Project Achievements

The program sought to revive ancestral sailing methods, mentor apprentice constructors and use boat-building to strengthen community pride and inter-island cooperation.

So far, the team has organized a showcase, released a publication and supported the construction or restoration of nearly three dozen boats – from the southern region to the northern shoreline.

Material Advantages

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

“In other places, they often employ synthetic materials. Here, we can still work with whole trees,” he explains. “That represents a significant advantage.”

The boats constructed under the program merge traditional boat forms with local sailing systems.

Academic Integration

Since 2024, Tikoure has also been instructing navigation and traditional construction history at the educational institution.

“For the first time ever these subjects are offered at graduate studies. This isn’t academic – this is knowledge I’ve lived. I’ve navigated major waters on these canoes. I’ve felt overwhelming happiness doing it.”

Island Cooperation

He voyaged with the members of the traditional boat, the Fijian canoe that traveled to Tonga for the regional gathering in 2024.

“Throughout the region, including our location, we’re part of a collective initiative,” he states. “We’re restoring the sea together.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure visited the European location to introduce a “Indigenous perspective of the marine environment” when he conferred with Macron and other leaders.

Before state and overseas representatives, he argued for cooperative sea policies based on Kanak custom and local engagement.

“We must engage local populations – most importantly people dependent on marine resources.”

Contemporary Evolution

Currently, when mariners from various island nations – from the Fijian islands, Micronesia and New Zealand – visit Lifou, they study canoes together, adjust the structure and finally sail side by side.

“It’s not about duplicating the old models, we make them evolve.”

Holistic Approach

For Tikoure, instructing mariners and supporting ecological regulations are connected.

“The fundamental issue involves public engagement: who has the right to travel ocean waters, and who determines what occurs in these waters? The canoe function as a means to begin that dialogue.”