kastom

— Mats were used in kastom ceremonies, but they were not identified as kastom themselves. By coming to Ambae to promote, document, and revive weaving skills and mats, emphasizing that women have their own kastom and contribute to the kastom life of the community, we gave women a new perspective on their own activities. […] As the identification of traditional knowledge as kastom enables communities to turn from the past to the future, so it seems possible that identification of women's activities as kastom will create a means by which women's status in Vanuatu can change.