TASIK YAP Spring Activities

By Tini Dabugsiy

June 24, 2024

Weloy Youth & Sports Organizations 

From April-June 2024, the TASIK programs in both Kaday and Okaw Communities have made good progress. Both communities are engaged in rope-making using coconut husk fibers soaked in water near the mangrove stands and in the sea grass near the shore, a method known as “lib.” 

In the Kaday community activities are being led by a wise elder last used the lib method to prepare husks for ropemaking in the 1980s. So far, the community of Kaday has identified their coconut husk site and has cleaned the surrounding area. The community is readying to harvest coconuts for husking, prepare the taryan (husks), and bury or soak the taryan.  

Kaday Community lib, 2024

The Okaw Community is also benefiting from the advice of the Kaday elder. In Okaw, the men in Okaw are conducting experiments to test different coconut husks, processing techniques, soaking times, and soaking areas (lib). Their goals are to reduce processing time (aiming for less than four months) and to assess fiber color, strength, workability, and durability. So far, they have identified suitable coconut trees and have harvested coconuts, selecting choice husks (of suitable age and color). They are using thinner husks to potentially reduce soaking time. Some taryan have been buried or soaked in rice sacks, and some were pounded before burial. The burial locations include an excavated area near the mangrove thicket, and a sea grass bed offshore. Okaw community will monitor the taryan and when the husks are ready, they will be washed, bundled, and prepared for ropemaking in community and with local youth. 

Okaw Community work (L-R): Elders sharing strategy with PREL TASIK team; pounding taryan in preparation for husk burial; taryan in lib; Dylan picking coconut.

Women’s Work in Okaw 

Women at times take part in the ropemaking when the taryan are ready for cleaning as well as the rolling process when the taryan are being rolled into the rope itself. While waiting for the taryan to get soaked and be cleansed in the ocean and mangrove area, the women and girls of Okaw are preparing a taro patch for the planting of soft taro. The site is one of their existing swamp taro areas. 

The taro cultivation process involves several steps: they will need to harvest swamp taro, clean and clear anything that will be in the way of the plants, make waterways, clear roots that might disturb the soft taro growth, and collect mulch/compost. At that point they will be ready to plant the soft taro then apply compost around the planted taro. As they work they are teaching the young girls in the community about site preparation, clearing techniques, planting methods, and mulching practices.  

Women preparing the taro patch for soft taro, 2024.

The community engagement in traditional practices demonstrates a commitment to preserving cultural knowledge and skills while involving younger generations in these important processes.