What’s new – Page 5 – Canoes of the Marshall Islands

Visitors’ Center

September 1, 2014September 28, 2014 Clem (webmaster)

If you’d like to learn more about Marshallese canoes and their history, come and visit the Waan Aelon in Majel’s Visitors Center, which is open during business hours Monday to Friday. The center features a large model canoe strung from the ceiling, a range of traditional canoe-building tools, and a swag of other items related to the program and the history of canoes. On sale are WAM crafts, T-shirts, and DVDs about the canoes and the Marshall Islands.

The center was created in 2011 with the assistance of a $10,000 grant from the Pacific Asia Travel Association. It is located in a former program office, which the staff grew out of, relocating upstairs in the main building.

At the opening, in September, WAM Director Alson Kelen thanked PATA and the RMI National Training Council for their. “We’re fortunate for all the help we’ve received,” said Kelen. “We start small, but more will grow around the circle. And we invite everyone who wants to contribute old pictures of canoes or traditional materials for the center,” said Kelen.

Meanwhile, regular program director Ken Taggart emphasized the need to teach young people to carry on their traditional knowledge. The program currently has 24 trainees. “As part of the canoe building training, we help outer islands by building canoes because they don’t have the materials. If they cut down the trees, they wouldn’t have breadfruit to eat,” said Taggart.

Kelen added: “Our program is not following what’s on paper, but that which is in our hearts.”

WAM Visitors Center

WAM visitors center opening day sept 2011

Read the WAM book

September 1, 2014January 21, 2015 Karen Earnshaw

Many of the trainees in the 2012 program star in the book simply titled WAM: Canoes of the Marshall Islands, which was published thanks to the Unbound Bookmaker Project, coordinated by Jamie Zvirzdin. Under this project many Marshallese non-profit organizations were sponsored to create and publish books.

According to the Unbound Bookmaker site the project aims to provide an authorship experience for children in the Marshall Islands to write, illustrate, and publish their own stories, in both Marshallese and English.

“Our aims for this project were to promote literacy, creativity, andc onfidence, with the additional benefit of teaching important life skills, imparting knowledge on environmental issues, and preserving local culture,” Jamie said. “About 300 students in the Marshall Islands have participated in creating 15 class books. Each has received a copy as part of the project, and each library has a set of the books.”

The WAM family with book publisher Jamie Zvirzdin, second from right. Photo: WAM

To hear more about the project, you can listen to Jamie Zvirzdin, creator of the project, in an interview with ABC Radio Australia.

To see more about the book or to buy a copy, go to the amazon store.

New 2014 trainees!

August 20, 2014October 5, 2014 Clem (webmaster)

Twenty-five trainees joined WAM for a three-month program on July 7. The program is due to end at the end of September. Photo credit WAM.

Three cheers for the WAM Class of 2013

December 10, 2013October 5, 2014 Clem (webmaster)

Australian Volunteer Jane Evans played a key role in the training of WAM’s Class of 2013, which saw the trainees graduate in December of 2013. A large crowd attended the ceremony, held next to the Canoe House in the grounds of the Marshall Islands Resort. These included Alison Nashion, the head of the RMI National Training Council, which is a strong supporter of the WAM program. A key speech was given by long-time friend of WAM, Marshall Islands Resort’s General Manager Hirobo Obeketang.

Graduating Class of 2013.

$English and Math instructor Jane Evans presents one of the graduates with his certificate.$

English and Math instructor Jane Evans presents one of the graduates with his certificate.

Hirobo Obeketang, the Marshall Islands Resort General Manager and long-time supporter of the WAM program, gives a key speech at the 2013 graduation.

Graduates pose with a large scale model canoe at the graduation.

WAM trainees ready to graduate

February 20, 2012October 5, 2014 Clem (webmaster)

By Karen Earnshaw

The challenge for many non-government organizations (NGOs) in the Marshall Islands is that donor organizations provide funds for programs and then require hard data to prove that the program has been a success.
Such is the case at Waan Aelon in Majel (Canoes of the Marshall Islands). Associate Director of the long-running program, Kathy Hutton, said: “All our funders require evidence-based evaluation to show the success of the programs. That’s fair enough, it’s understandable, but in some cases it’s very difficult to measure what we’re achieving.”
For example, tests can clearly show how trainees have improved in math and English or their ability to use woodworking equipment, but life skills are another matter.
The current six-month vocational trainee program at WAM is nearing an end, with graduation set for this Friday. “Over the months I’ve seen huge increases in confidence and self-esteem amongst our trainees, but how do you calculate that and provide it as evidence?
“Plus, 90 percent of the trainees may not even be able to recognize the massive changes in themselves. Many people, including myself, will underplay how they are performing.”
The biggest change Hutton has seen is “a huge improvement in their life skills. For example, they’ve learned to turn up on time and most have made a big effort in that department.”
Twenty-five youth were accepted into the program, which began on August 1, 2011 and is funded by the RMI National Training Council. “In the first few weeks we had a couple of dropouts, but these were quickly replaced by other applicants. One or two more dropped out over the months, but we’re ending the course with 22 trainees.
“Teaching them good working skills is a slow process,” Hutton said. “I’ve seen some that took four to five months before they seemed to be fully participating and embracing each part, such as being counseled.”
The lead instructor in the program is Vocational Program Manager Ken Taggart. “He absolutely loves the kids,” Hutton said. “He’s just wonderful working them on math and woodwork.”
Taggart also helped train four young men to be trainers, two of which are from Ebeye and two from Lae. The hope is that this group will return to their home islands to run similar courses.

Wa Kuk Wa Jimor – Marshallese Canoes Today

September 27, 2011October 18, 2014 Clem (webmaster)

Wa Kuk Wa Jimor – Marshallese Canoes Today from Rachel Miller.

The canoe tradition is one of the foundations of Marshallese culture. In the past it was the key to survival in the Marshall Islands, and it continues to embody many of the key values and practices of traditional Marshallese culture. “Wa Kuk Wa Jimor – Marshallese Canoes Today” (55 min, 2011), by Rachel Miller, introduces the tradition of the Marshallese canoe—including the history, types, and technological innovations of the canoe—and the complex connection between the canoe and Marshallese culture. It looks at the state of the canoe tradition in three locations in the Marshalls and explores the future of the canoe tradition. The film features interviews with elders and experts from the Marshall Islands, and is in both English and Marshallese. “Wa Kuk Wa Jimor – Marshallese Canoes Today” was funded in part by the Hawai‘i Council for the Humanities (HCH).

Gift for Taiwan

September 27, 2005October 5, 2014 Clem (webmaster)

To thank the government and people of Taiwan for all they do for the Marshall Islands, in 2005 President Kessai H. Note commissioned the Waan Aelõñ in Majel program to build a canoe that would be presented to then President Chen Shui-bian.

Following tradition, the canoe hull and outrigger float were built from the wood of a breadfruit tree and the outrigger booms and sail booms were built using wood from the Lukwej tree, which is a member of the mangosteen family.

According to WAM Director Alson Kelen: “In the olden days, it would take up to a year to build such a canoe, but we made this one in just a few weeks.” Two sails were made for the canoe: One from cloth and one from natural fibers. “It was the first woven sail that was used by WAM or maybe any other Marshallese in the last 100 years.” The WAM team used the cloth sail for sea trials.

The canoe was delivered to the Republic of China on a Taiwanese military vessel that was visiting the RMI around that time.