Cultural Heritage & Traditional Knowledge

Senikau began as a heritage committee, and cultural work remains the heart of everything we do. Working with chiefs and custom owners on Efate, Tanna, Malekula, Pentecost and Santo, our field teams document weaving patterns, canoe and slit-drum carving, medicinal plant knowledge, dances and oral histories — always with the free, prior and informed consent of the knowledge holders themselves.

Nothing recorded by Senikau is sold or licensed. Every recording, photograph and transcript is deposited in duplicate: one copy with the originating community in a form they choose, one copy in our Port Vila archive, which is open to Ni-Vanuatu researchers, teachers and students free of charge.

Twice a year we run intergenerational transmission camps, where elders teach a named apprentice group over ten days. Apprentices receive a stipend so that learning does not cost a family its daily income, and each camp closes with a public showing in the host village.

How to take part

Member communities apply through their committee delegate; individuals may apply directly by calling the Port Vila office or completing the volunteer and assistance form on our contact page. Intakes are announced at the annual assembly and posted at partner schools, churches and market houses. Where places are limited, priority goes to applicants from communities not served in the previous cycle.

Reporting

Each program cycle produces a written report covering participation, expenditure against budget, participant feedback and what will change next cycle. Reports are tabled at the annual assembly and published in our governance and transparency section.