United Nations Approves New World Map to Show Africa's True Scale
New York, 6 September 2026
The UN has voted to adopt the Equal Earth map projection, correcting centuries of distortion that made Africa, which is 14 times larger than Greenland, appear the same size.
A Historic Vote for Cartographic Correction
In a landmark decision on Friday, 4 September 2026, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the “Correct the Map” resolution, marking a major departure from centuries of traditional cartography [3][4][5]. The resolution, which encourages the global adoption of the “Equal Earth” map projection, was passed with an overwhelming majority of 164 votes in favour [1][3][4]. The United States was the sole nation to vote against the measure, while six states—specifically Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia, and Ukraine—abstained from the vote [1][2][4]. This non-binding resolution, spearheaded by Togo on behalf of the 54-nation African Group and co-sponsored by France, aims to address the “symbolic minimization” of equatorial regions on global maps [4][5][6].
The Legacy of Mercator and the Equal Earth Solution
For over 450 years, global geography has been dominated by the Mercator projection, created by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569 [1][3]. While Mercator’s map prioritised precise angles for maritime navigation, it severely distorted the relative sizes of landmasses, inflating areas near the poles while compressing equatorial regions [1][4][5]. This distortion famously made Greenland appear similar in size to Africa, despite the African continent actually being approximately 14 times larger [2][4][6]. In terms of physical geography, Africa spans approximately 30.3 million square kilometres, Latin America covers 20 million square kilometres, Oceania covers 8.5 million square kilometres, and South Asia covers 5.1 million square kilometres [1]. Together, these four regions represent a combined landmass of 63.9 million square kilometres that has historically been visually compressed on standard maps [1].
Geopolitical Friction and Implementation Plans
The UN resolution sparked notable geopolitical debate, particularly from the United States, which characterised the initiative as an “ideological agenda” and a distraction from more pressing international issues [3][5]. US representatives argued that the UN should focus its resources on immediate global challenges rather than debating map projections from the 16th century [2]. Additionally, Ukraine and some European Union representatives raised concerns that equal-area projections could introduce ambiguity regarding disputed territories and national sovereignty [4]. Conversely, France strongly supported the resolution, with Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announcing that France will abandon the Mercator projection in favour of more accurate representations, viewing it as a necessary step to correct distorted perceptions [3][6].