New Caledonia, also known as Kanaky, is in many ways a surprising place. Nicknamed "Le Caillou (The Stone)," the surface of this Melanesian archipelago's main island, Grand Terre, is essentially composed of nickel, chromium, magnesium, and manganese, a mix that should be toxic to plants. In New Caledonia plants that should not technically be able to survive have developed mechanisms that  allow them to cope with, even to thrive in, such harsh conditions.

Looking at the history of New Caledonia, one may say the same about the island nation's indigenous Kanak people. French colonization of New Caledonia was harsh. There was economic and physical exploitation, there was apartheid-like segregation and forced relocation to Kanak-only reservations...at many turns Kanak population could easily have disappeared. The fact that today the Kanaks are the main political force in New Caledonia is a testament to their unique survival instinct.