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This past October on Lifou, a ancient-style canoe was set afloat in the turquoise waters – a seemingly minor event that represented a profoundly important moment.

It was the first launch of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in generations, an occasion that assembled the island’s three chiefly clans in a uncommon display of togetherness.

Seafarer and campaigner Aile Tikoure was the driving force behind the launch. For the previous eight-year period, he has spearheaded a initiative that seeks to restore heritage canoe building in New Caledonia.

Numerous traditional boats have been constructed in an project aimed at reconnecting native Kanak communities with their oceanic traditions. Tikoure states the boats also help the “start of conversation” around maritime entitlements and conservation measures.

International Advocacy

In July, he visited France and conferred with President Emmanuel Macron, pushing for ocean governance developed alongside and by native populations that acknowledge their relationship with the sea.

“Previous generations always navigated the ocean. We abandoned that practice for a while,” Tikoure says. “Currently we’re rediscovering it again.”

Heritage boats hold significant historical significance in New Caledonia. They once symbolised mobility, exchange and clan alliances across islands, but those customs diminished under foreign occupation and outside cultural pressures.

Cultural Reclamation

This mission began in 2016, when the New Caledonia government’s culture department was exploring how to restore ancestral boat-making techniques. Tikoure worked with the administration and after two years the canoe construction project – known as Kenu Waan project – was born.

“The most difficult aspect was not wood collection, it was persuading communities,” he explains.

Project Achievements

The program sought to revive heritage voyaging practices, train young builders and use vessel construction to strengthen traditional heritage and island partnerships.

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

Natural Resources

Different from many other oceanic nations where deforestation has diminished wood resources, New Caledonia still has appropriate timber for constructing major boats.

“Elsewhere, they often use marine plywood. In our location, we can still carve solid logs,” he states. “This creates all the difference.”

The vessels created under the program integrate oceanic vessel shapes with regional navigation methods.

Academic Integration

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

“For the first time ever these topics are taught at master’s level. It’s not theory – this is knowledge I’ve lived. I’ve sailed vast distances on these vessels. I’ve cried tears of joy during these journeys.”

Regional Collaboration

He traveled with the members of the traditional boat, the Fijian canoe that traveled to Tonga for the oceanic conference in 2024.

“Throughout the region, from Fiji to here, we’re part of a collective initiative,” he explains. “We’re restoring the maritime heritage collectively.”

Policy Advocacy

This past July, Tikoure travelled to Nice, France to share a “Indigenous perspective of the marine environment” when he met with Macron and additional officials.

Addressing official and overseas representatives, he advocated for cooperative sea policies based on local practices and local engagement.

“It’s essential to include these communities – most importantly people dependent on marine resources.”

Modern Adaptation

Today, when navigators from across the Pacific – from Fiji, the Micronesian region and New Zealand – arrive in Lifou, they examine vessels in cooperation, refine the construction and ultimately voyage together.

“We don’t just copy the old models, we make them evolve.”

Comprehensive Vision

According to Tikoure, educating sailors and supporting ecological regulations are interrelated.

“The core concept concerns community participation: who has the right to travel ocean waters, and what authority governs what occurs on it? Traditional vessels function as a means to begin that dialogue.”