UN endorses new Equal Earth map

What's happened

The UN General Assembly has voted 164–1 to encourage use of the Equal Earth projection instead of the Mercator map. The non‑binding resolution, led by Togo and backed by the African Union, has prompted objections from the United States and concerns from countries including Ukraine, Japan and India over how disputed territories appear.

What's behind the headline?

What changed

The UN has encouraged institutions to use the Equal Earth projection, which preserves relative land area and restores Africa’s true scale on flat maps. The vote was 164 in favour, six abstentions and one against.

Who is driving this

• Togo has led the diplomatic push on behalf of the African Group and the African Union.
• Cartographers who developed Equal Earth in 2018 have been fielding government queries and updating annotated maps.

Why it matters now

• Maps shape perceptions in classrooms, media and policy. Replacing heavily used Mercator images will change visual signals about size and prominence.
• Technology platforms and education ministries will face immediate choices about which projection to show where relative area matters.

Practical effects and likely next steps

• The resolution is non‑binding, so change will be incremental. Governments and schools will review teaching materials; tech companies will decide whether to offer Equal Earth as a default when area matters.
• Disputes over borders and colouring will create follow‑on diplomatic notes: Japan, Ukraine and India have already flagged specific territorial depictions and will press for corrections.
• The United States’ lone opposing vote will keep the conversation political; Washington is likely to push back where domestic mapping norms or commercial products are affected.

Forecast

• Within a year, expect more educational atlases and UN publications to adopt equal‑area maps. Major mapping apps will offer equal‑area layers for thematic uses, but Mercator variants will remain in navigation and many digital tiles.
• Territorial disputes will force mapmakers to add disclaimers and localised versions, so the controversy will shift from projection mathematics to political labelling and colour choices.

Bottom line

The vote has changed the default debate over what maps teach. It will force publishers, educators and platforms to choose which distortions they accept and which they correct.

How we got here

The Mercator projection, created for 16th‑century navigation, has long exaggerated northern landmasses and downplayed Africa’s area. African states and the African Union have campaigned to promote equal‑area projections such as Equal Earth to correct classroom and institutional distortions.

Our analysis

The coverage frames the UN vote as both a technical correction and a political gesture. Read All Africa for the AU perspective: "Correcting the map means recognising that every region of the world deserves to be represented accurately" (Togo’s foreign minister Robert Dussey) and for reaction that "the resolution is not legally binding". Al Jazeera summarised the vote and quoted the US envoy calling the measure a "radical ideological project" and noted Kyiv's complaint that Crimea appears in a different shade. The Guardian reported cartographers' surprise and practical aftercare: Tom Patterson said he has been inundated with questions and is updating annotated maps after diplomats raised issues about colours and names. The Independent and AP supplied specifics on disputed areas: India objected to depictions of Kashmir and Japan demanded corrections over the Kurils; AP noted the vote tally and the US opposition. Ars Technica and BBC explained the technical trade‑offs between Mercator (navigation advantages) and Equal Earth (area preservation) and cited studies showing map familiarity shapes size estimates. Together these sources show a single technical decision rippling into diplomatic notes, education policy changes and platform choices.

Go deeper

• Will national education ministries change school atlases in the next school year?
• Which mapping companies will adopt Equal Earth as an optional layer or default?
• How will disputed borders be represented on a universal Equal Earth edition?

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