Vanuatu’s Vernacular Architecture Revitalization Project Receives Special Recognition at the 2025 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation

Located in the Middle Bush Area - including Lume RTC, Launarei, Launaura, Lohkhamal and Yunal communities - on Tanna Island in Tafea Province, the project focuses on revitalizing the nimalatan , a traditional vernacular structure deeply embedded in Vanuatu's kastom practices. Built entirely with local materials, the nimalatan is historically valued as a cyclone-resilient communal house that reflects generations of environmental knowledge and social cohesion.

Before conservation efforts began, many of these structures were declining as dwellings due to changing lifestyles and the adoption of modern construction materials. However, their remarkable performance during Cyclone Pam in 2015 renewed community recognition of their resilience and cultural significance.

UNESCO supported a government-led Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) and led the culture sector assessment, examining the cyclone's widespread impacts across Vanuatu's 83 islands. The PDNA identified priority recovery actions and underscored the role of traditional knowledge as a foundation for climate resilience, reinforcing the importance of safeguarding living heritage and informing subsequent initiatives to revitalize vernacular construction practices such as the nimalatan on Tanna Island.

Between 2016 and 2018, a collaborative project between local villages in the Middle Bush area and Kyoto University revitalized the nimalatan through participatory research, co-design processes and prototype construction. By combining scientific analysis with traditional expertise, the initiative enhanced structural strength, usability and sustainable resource management while safeguarding the cultural values embedded in kastom architecture.

Today, newly adapted nimalatans serve as women's centres, cyclone shelters and communal meeting spaces - demonstrating how living heritage can evolve while maintaining cultural continuity.