UN General Assembly adopts map reform to replace Mercator projection with Equal Earth
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The UN General Assembly voted 164-6-1 to endorse the Equal Earth projection, aiming to portray countries’ surface areas more accurately, after a proposal led by African nations.
The United Nations General Assembly approved a resolution on Friday to replace the widely used Mercator projection with the Equal Earth projection for world maps. The measure, backed by African Union members and the Bahamas, received 164 votes in favor, six abstentions and a single vote against from the United States.
The resolution cites the need for a more "equitable" visual representation of global regions, noting that the Mercator map exaggerates the size of high-latitude lands and diminishes the apparent scale of Africa, Latin America and South Asia. It argues that such distortions can influence perceptions of socioeconomic conditions, development potential and geopolitical realities.
Under the proposed Equal Earth projection, surface areas are shown proportionally: Africa appears much larger, Brazil expands, and Greenland shrinks to a size comparable to the Democratic Republic of Congo. The change is described as an "act of cognitive justice and memorial reparation."
France’s foreign affairs minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, said France will abandon the Mercator projection in official representations, adding that visual prominence of the United States, Russia and China can shape public perception. The resolution also urges digital mapping services, including major online platforms, to adopt the new projection.
The move follows the African Union’s adoption of the Equal Earth map in March and a subsequent request by Togo on the AU’s behalf for UN member states to follow suit. Advocates view the shift as a step toward more accurate geographic education and a correction of long-standing visual biases.