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During the autumn month of October on Lifou island, a ancient-style canoe was launched into the lagoon – a seemingly minor event that represented a profoundly important moment.

It was the inaugural voyage of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in living memory, an event that assembled the island’s three chiefly clans in a rare show of unity.

Activist and sailor Aile Tikoure was instrumental in the launch. For the previous eight-year period, he has spearheaded a initiative that seeks to restore heritage canoe building in New Caledonia.

Many heritage vessels have been constructed in an initiative aimed at reconnecting local Kanak populations with their seafaring legacy. Tikoure says the boats also facilitate the “start of conversation” around maritime entitlements and conservation measures.

Global Outreach

During the summer month of July, he travelled to France and had discussions with President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for maritime regulations developed alongside and by Indigenous communities that recognise their connection to the ocean.

“Our ancestors always navigated the ocean. We lost that for a while,” Tikoure explains. “Currently we’re rediscovering it again.”

Heritage boats hold profound traditional meaning in New Caledonia. They once represented mobility, interaction and family cooperations across islands, but those customs faded under colonial rule and religious conversion efforts.

Tradition Revival

The initiative began in 2016, when the New Caledonia cultural authorities was considering how to bring back traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure collaborated with the administration and after two years the boat building initiative – known as Kenu Waan project – was established.

“The hardest part wasn’t wood collection, it was convincing people,” he says.

Project Achievements

The initiative sought to revive ancestral sailing methods, educate new craftspeople and use canoe-making to reinforce cultural identity and inter-island cooperation.

Up to now, the group has created a display, released a publication and supported the building or renovation of nearly three dozen boats – from the southern region to the northern shoreline.

Material Advantages

Different from many other Pacific islands where forest clearing has reduced lumber availability, New Caledonia still has appropriate timber for crafting substantial vessels.

“There, they often use synthetic materials. In our location, we can still carve solid logs,” he explains. “It makes a significant advantage.”

The canoes created under the program merge traditional boat forms with Melanesian rigging.

Teaching Development

Since 2024, Tikoure has also been educating students in maritime travel and heritage building techniques at the educational institution.

“For the first time ever these topics are included at graduate studies. It goes beyond textbooks – this is knowledge I’ve experienced. I’ve crossed oceans on these canoes. I’ve cried tears of joy doing it.”

Regional Collaboration

He traveled with the members of the Fijian vessel, the Pacific vessel that journeyed to Tonga for the oceanic conference in 2024.

“Throughout the region, through various islands, it’s the same movement,” he explains. “We’re taking back the sea as a community.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure visited Nice, France to present a “Kanak vision of the ocean” when he had discussions with Macron and additional officials.

Addressing official and international delegates, he pushed for cooperative sea policies based on Kanak custom and community involvement.

“It’s essential to include these communities – particularly fishing communities.”

Modern Adaptation

Today, when mariners from various island nations – from Fiji, the Micronesian region and New Zealand – come to Lifou, they study canoes together, refine the construction and eventually sail side by side.

“We’re not simply replicating the ancient designs, we make them evolve.”

Holistic Approach

In his view, teaching navigation and promoting conservation measures are interrelated.

“It’s all about how we involve people: who has the right to navigate marine territories, and who determines what happens there? The canoe is a way to begin that dialogue.”