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This past October on Lifou, a ancient-style canoe was launched into the coastal lagoon – a seemingly minor event that marked a deeply symbolic moment.

It was the maiden journey of a ancestral vessel on Lifou in many decades, an gathering that united the island’s three chiefly clans in a rare show of unity.

Activist and sailor Aile Tikoure was the driving force behind the launch. For the past eight years, he has led a program that aims to revive heritage canoe building in New Caledonia.

Numerous traditional boats have been built in an initiative intended to reunite local Kanak populations with their seafaring legacy. Tikoure explains the boats also facilitate the “beginning of dialogue” around ocean rights and conservation measures.

International Advocacy

This past July, he visited France and met President Emmanuel Macron, advocating for maritime regulations shaped with and by native populations that recognise their connection to the ocean.

“Our ancestors always traveled by water. We abandoned that practice for a while,” Tikoure explains. “Today we’re reclaiming it again.”

Canoes hold deep cultural significance in New Caledonia. They once symbolised movement, exchange and family cooperations across islands, but those traditions diminished under foreign occupation and religious conversion efforts.

Cultural Reclamation

This mission started in 2016, when the New Caledonia cultural authorities was looking at how to restore traditional canoe-building skills. Tikoure partnered with the administration and two years later the boat building initiative – known as Project Kenu Waan – was established.

“The most difficult aspect didn’t involve cutting down trees, it was convincing people,” he notes.

Program Successes

The program worked to bring back heritage voyaging practices, train young builders and use canoe-making to reinforce cultural identity and regional collaboration.

So far, the group has produced an exhibition, issued a volume and facilitated the building or renovation of around 30 canoes – from Goro to Ponerihouen.

Natural Resources

Different from many other oceanic nations where deforestation has diminished lumber availability, New Caledonia still has proper lumber for crafting substantial vessels.

“There, they often work with modern composites. In our location, we can still craft from natural timber,” he explains. “It makes a crucial distinction.”

The vessels constructed under the program combine oceanic vessel shapes with local sailing systems.

Academic Integration

Beginning this year, Tikoure has also been educating students in seafaring and heritage building techniques at the University of New Caledonia.

“It’s the first time these topics are included at graduate studies. It’s not theory – these are experiences I’ve personally undertaken. I’ve sailed vast distances on these canoes. I’ve cried tears of joy during these journeys.”

Regional Collaboration

He traveled with the team of the traditional boat, the heritage craft that sailed to Tonga for the oceanic conference in 2024.

“From Hawaii to Rapa Nui, through various islands, it’s the same movement,” he states. “We’re restoring the maritime heritage collectively.”

Policy Advocacy

During the summer, Tikoure visited the French city to present a “Kanak vision of the sea” when he met with Macron and other leaders.

In front of government and foreign officials, he pushed for collaborative ocean management based on Kanak custom and community involvement.

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

Current Development

Today, when navigators from across the Pacific – from the Fijian islands, Micronesia and New Zealand – come to Lifou, they analyze boats together, refine the construction and finally sail side by side.

“It’s not about duplicating the old models, we enable their progression.”

Integrated Mission

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

“It’s all about public engagement: who is entitled to navigate marine territories, and who decides what occurs in these waters? The canoe is a way to initiate that discussion.”