TASIK KOSRAE Spring Weekends

By Joyminda George

June 24, 2024

Spring Weekend Activities

From March 17 – May 18, 2024, TASIK Kosrae held its Spring Weekend activities, bringing together youth and elders over seven separate days of programming. The team reconvened in February to gather as many youth as possible to learn traditional and indigenous knowledge from elders and knowledge holders. 

Initially, the TASIK team planned to focus on both canoe making and rope-making sessions. However, due to time constraints and limited availability of elders and knowledge holders, they concentrated solely on canoe making. 

Hollowing out the middle of the canoe, 2024.

Mr. Bobby Andrew’s youth group completed the following tasks:  

• Checked tree sites at Pukusrik, Insaru (Ruin), and Sealat 
• Selected an Insaru breadfruit tree for quality and convenience 
• Cut down the chosen tree and cleaned off bark and branches 
• Flattened the top of the canoe 
• Carved each side of the canoe 
• Measured and marked the center of the canoe, then drew the shape of the canoe to see where to carve next 
• Began carving the inside of the canoe 
• Continued carving to hollow out the middle halfway 
• Turned the canoe over to shape the exterior of the canoe 
• Relocated the lightened canoe to a safer place 
• Refined details by smoothing and reshaping 
• Attached the “em” (last piece) to the main part of the canoe 
• Prepared and tied together the lok, kiacs, and em into the main part of the canoe (inka) 

Canoe preparations with Mr. Bobby Andrew, 2024.

The elders and knowledge holders explained that this canoe measured only 2 1/2 fatwem (about 2 1/2 meters/yards). The process incorporated all aspects of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math). 

News of the project spread quickly on the small island of Kosrae. Other youth groups reached out to join, so TASIK/PREL connected with Tafunsak youth groups to support them to also make canoes. The Tafunsak groups (youth tolu, mutunte, yatta, and walung) built four racing canoes measuring 4+ fatwem (4+ meters/yards). While the process was similar, these groups chanted a traditional chant when bringing the wood to the carving sites, unlike Mr. Bobby Andrew and Kaardal’s group, which only played music. 

Tafunsak Canoe Build, 2024.

In total, over 120 youth participated in the canoe-making projects, including more than 25 who joined Mr. Andrew’s group. The Spring weekend learning sessions proved particularly fruitful in engaging youth and elders/knowledge holders.  

Rope-Making Update 

The rope-making session was initially postponed due to a fire at knowledge holder Mr. Metson Fred’s house, which destroyed his entire home and all prepared materials. It was a tragic incident and he has not been able to reconvene with TASIK. TASIK Kosrae is seeking another knowledge holder for the summer session and is planning to conduct rope-making activities from July to September. This has proven difficult so far, but the rope-making will be a big final event for the TASIK Kosrae Team.  

Future Plans

Preparing for the future, 2024.

For the summer sessions, TASIK Kosrae team is organizing three days of storytelling, culinary activities, weaving, and elder-youth interactions for July 9-11, 2024. 

Overall, TASIK has provided Kosrae youths and elders the opportunity to embrace their culture and knowledge, empowering young girls and boys to engage with and be involved in perpetuating indigenous traditional knowledge and skills.