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This past October on Lifou island, a ancient-style canoe was launched into the turquoise waters – a small act that signified a profoundly important moment.

It was the first launch of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in living memory, an gathering 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 last eight years, he has overseen a initiative that works to resurrect ancestral vessel construction in New Caledonia.

Dozens of canoes have been crafted in an effort aimed at reconnecting local Kanak populations with their seafaring legacy. Tikoure says the boats also facilitate the “opening of discussions” around maritime entitlements and environmental policies.

International Advocacy

During the summer month of July, he visited France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, advocating for ocean governance developed alongside and by native populations that recognise their connection to the ocean.

“Our ancestors always crossed the sea. We lost that for a while,” Tikoure says. “Now we’re finding it again.”

Traditional vessels hold significant historical significance in New Caledonia. They once represented mobility, exchange and family cooperations across islands, but those customs diminished under colonisation and outside cultural pressures.

Tradition Revival

The initiative commenced in 2016, when the New Caledonia heritage ministry was considering how to restore ancestral boat-making techniques. Tikoure worked with the administration and two years later the vessel restoration program – known as the Kenu Waan initiative – was born.

“The hardest part wasn’t cutting down trees, it was gaining local support,” he notes.

Initiative Accomplishments

The program worked to bring back heritage voyaging practices, educate new craftspeople and use vessel construction to strengthen cultural identity and island partnerships.

Up to now, the team has created a display, released a publication and enabled the construction or restoration of nearly three dozen boats – from the southern region to the northeastern coast.

Material Advantages

Unlike many other Pacific islands where forest clearing has diminished lumber availability, New Caledonia still has appropriate timber for constructing major boats.

“There, they often work with modern composites. Locally, we can still craft from natural timber,” he says. “This creates a significant advantage.”

The vessels created under the program merge oceanic vessel shapes with local sailing systems.

Teaching Development

Beginning this year, Tikoure has also been instructing navigation and traditional construction history at the University of New Caledonia.

“This marks the initial occasion this knowledge are taught at graduate studies. It goes beyond textbooks – these are experiences I’ve lived. I’ve crossed oceans on these canoes. I’ve experienced profound emotion during these journeys.”

Regional Collaboration

He voyaged with the team of the Uto ni Yalo, the Pacific vessel that traveled to Tonga for the Pacific Islands Forum in 2024.

“Across the Pacific, through various islands, this represents a unified effort,” he explains. “We’re reclaiming the maritime heritage together.”

Political Engagement

In July, Tikoure travelled to the European location to share a “Indigenous perspective of the sea” when he met with Macron and additional officials.

Addressing official and foreign officials, he pushed for collaborative ocean management based on Kanak custom and participation.

“It’s essential to include them – particularly those who live from fishing.”

Modern Adaptation

Now, when sailors from across the Pacific – from Fiji, Micronesia and New Zealand – arrive in Lifou, they study canoes collectively, adjust the structure and finally voyage together.

“We’re not simply replicating the traditional forms, we enable their progression.”

Integrated Mission

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

“The core concept concerns how we involve people: who is entitled to travel ocean waters, and who decides what happens there? Heritage boats serve as a method to start that conversation.”