How do we protect our future—without losing our past?
From the village to the Kloud, we’re a growing network reclaiming kastom from the roots up—strengthening cultural identity, community power and climate resilience, together.
Raising Resilience Rooted in Kastom
Our vision: A future where Indigenous wisdom leads climate action and sustainable development—and kastom continues to inspire, guide, and grow.
Our why: Climate change is more than rising seas and stronger storms. It’s also the erosion of identity, knowledge, and intergenerational connection. A deep loss for our people.
Our work: Kastom Keepers strengthens climate resilience by reviving ancestral knowledge, mentoring youth to preserve it digitally, and reconnecting island communities. Some of our answers lie within our kastoms.
Kastom
Kastom refers to Indigenous systems of knowledge, practices, governance, traditional oral histories and spirituality passed down through generations in Solomon Islands/Melanesia.
Kastom Keepers
The “keepers” are intergenerational custodians—grandmothers, uncles, chiefs, youth, and children—who hold, practice, and protect this knowledge in a rapidly changing world. They are also referred to as ‘knowledge holders’.
Where We Work
Australia
Based in the Solomon Islands—a Pacific Island nation northeast of Australia—we work alongside nine climate-vulnerable communities across the archipelago to protect culture, strengthen resilience, and adapt through kastom.
Our current partner communities include:
Nusa Baruku and Mbabanga Island (Gizo/Kolombangara)
Six communities in Ward 1, Aoke/Langalanga Lagoon (Malaita)
Bio Village (West Kwara’ae, Malaita)
Maeuria Community (Tobaita, North Malaita)
The urgency is real—the Solomon Islands has already lost five major islands to climate change. Our work is about ensuring culture doesn’t vanish with the land.
Our founder, Millicent Barty, serves as a Blue Pacific Ambassador—championing Kastom Keepers’ bold, Indigenous vision for a resilient and united Blue Pacific future.
— Pacific Islands Forum (PIFS)
#BlueOcean2050Vision
What we do
Our work is already driving meaningful climate action — see how: Save Lilisiana! Sea Wall Project
We restore traditional learning spaces as community hubs—centres for kastom, governance, cultural continuity, and shared leadership.
Our co-designed ‘Kastom Keeping’ programs preserve cultural heritage through intergenerational learning and ancestral practice.
We draw on reclaimed kastom to respond to climate threats—from rising seas to food insecurity—offering solutions grounded in Indigenous wisdom.
Through the Kastom Kloud, we equip youth with digital tools to document ancestral knowledge, connect generations, and safeguard culture for the future.
All of that in order to help the world:
We’re building a growing network of Kastom Keepers—reviving sacred ties to land, sea, sky, and spirit. By reconnecting both on-ground and online, we’re sharing our model with the world and growing the next generation of knowledge holders, stewards, and guardians.
This Work is Already Changing Lives
Lilisiana’s Fae’fae: A home for tradition and climate resilience.
Fueling a Community-Led Movement
Kastom Keepers began as a self-initiated effort by Millicent Barty during her Emerson Collective Fellowship in 2023. Today, our work is sustained through foundational support from Millicent Designs Ltd., alongside a blend of fellowship programs, small grants, and strong community partnerships.
Every dollar or hour you give helps keep this movement rooted in community leadership and cultural integrity.
Strength in every lending hand
Over the past two years, we’ve refined a community-led model for climate action—one rooted in kastom, built with communities, and tested on the ground. We know it works. Now, we’re ready to scale. We’re looking for people and partners who share our values and vision to help us take this proven model further—across islands, generations, and digital spaces.
Keep Kastom Alive
Help preserve and pass on ancestral knowledge.
Lend a Hand
Support kastom-led climate action, one community at a time.
Contact Us
Interested in working together or supporting our movement?
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