UN backs Equal Earth map projection, challenging 455-year-old Mercator standard

The United Nations General Assembly has formally backed a resolution calling for the adoption of the Equal Earth cartographic projection, a map that presents Africa as larger while reducing the size of North America and Europe compared to traditional world maps.

The resolution, supported by 164 countries, seeks "a more accurate representation" of continental landmasses. The United States cast the sole vote against the measure, while six other states abstained.

Replacing a 455-year-old standard

The Equal Earth projection is positioned as an alternative to the Mercator projection, which has served as the dominant world map since Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator designed it for maritime navigation in 1569. The resolution describes the new projection as "a relevant option for improving the accuracy of the cartographic representation of the world" and urges member states to adopt it in place of the Mercator map.

Several African countries spearheaded the initiative. Togo's Foreign Minister Robert Dussey, whose country drove the resolution, argued that maps "guide education, nourish the imagination, and influence collective perceptions".

"They are therefore never neutral, when they present a distorted image of our planet, they risk perpetuating inaccurate representation that are passed down through generation," Dussey said.

The vote marks a significant shift in how the world's geography may be depicted in classrooms, atlases and official documents, challenging centuries of cartographic convention that critics say has minimised the visual prominence of the Global South.

Source: South China Morning Post