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In October on Lifou, a ancient-style canoe was set afloat in the turquoise waters – a seemingly minor event that represented a highly meaningful moment.

It was the inaugural voyage of a heritage boat on Lifou in many decades, an occasion that united the island’s primary tribal groups in a uncommon display of togetherness.

Seafarer and campaigner Aile Tikoure was instrumental in the launch. For the past eight years, he has spearheaded a initiative that seeks to restore heritage canoe building in New Caledonia.

Many heritage vessels have been constructed in an effort aimed at reconnecting Indigenous Kanak people with their maritime heritage. Tikoure states the boats also help the “start of conversation” around maritime entitlements and conservation measures.

Diplomatic Efforts

During the summer month of July, he visited France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, advocating for ocean governance shaped with and by native populations that honor their maritime heritage.

“Our ancestors always crossed the sea. We abandoned that practice for a period,” Tikoure explains. “Currently we’re rediscovering it again.”

Canoes hold profound traditional meaning in New Caledonia. They once represented movement, trade and clan alliances across islands, but those practices declined under foreign occupation and religious conversion efforts.

Heritage Restoration

His journey commenced in 2016, when the New Caledonia cultural authorities was exploring how to restore traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure partnered with the administration and following a two-year period the boat building initiative – known as Project Kenu Waan – was born.

“The most difficult aspect wasn’t harvesting timber, it was convincing people,” he explains.

Program Successes

The initiative sought to revive heritage voyaging practices, educate new craftspeople and use vessel construction to strengthen community pride and inter-island cooperation.

So far, the group has organized a showcase, issued a volume and supported the construction or restoration of nearly three dozen boats – from Goro to Ponerihouen.

Natural Resources

Unlike many other oceanic nations where deforestation has reduced timber supplies, New Caledonia still has suitable wood for constructing major boats.

“In other places, they often employ marine plywood. Locally, we can still carve solid logs,” he states. “That represents a crucial distinction.”

The boats constructed under the program combine Polynesian hull design with local sailing systems.

Educational Expansion

Starting recently, Tikoure has also been teaching seafaring and ancestral craft methods at the educational institution.

“It’s the first time these subjects are offered at graduate studies. This isn’t academic – it’s something I’ve personally undertaken. I’ve crossed oceans on traditional boats. I’ve cried tears of joy while accomplishing this.”

Pacific Partnerships

Tikoure sailed with the team of the Uto ni Yalo, the Fijian canoe that journeyed to Tonga for the oceanic conference in 2024.

“Across the Pacific, from Fiji to here, it’s the same movement,” he says. “We’re reclaiming the ocean as a community.”

Policy Advocacy

This past July, Tikoure journeyed to the French city to introduce a “Traditional understanding of the sea” when he met with Macron and government representatives.

Addressing official and international delegates, he argued for cooperative sea policies based on Kanak custom and participation.

“You have to involve local populations – most importantly people dependent on marine resources.”

Contemporary Evolution

Currently, when navigators from throughout the region – from Fiji, Micronesia and Aotearoa – visit Lifou, they examine vessels in cooperation, adjust the structure and ultimately sail side by side.

“We don’t just copy the traditional forms, we make them evolve.”

Integrated Mission

According to Tikoure, instructing mariners and supporting ecological regulations are linked.

“The fundamental issue involves public engagement: who has the right to navigate marine territories, and who determines what occurs on it? The canoe function as a means to initiate that discussion.”