UN votes 164-1 to adopt area-accurate world maps, US sole no vote
The United Nations General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution on September 5, 2026, to replace the Mercator projection with area-accurate maps like the Equal Earth projection, following an African-led campaign. The vote was 164 in favor, 6 abstentions, and the United States as the sole opposing nation. The Mercator projection, developed in 1569, distorts landmass sizes, making Africa appear much smaller than its actual size relative to Europe and North America.
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Cross-source coverage
Common ground
- The Mercator projection distorts the size of landmasses, making Africa appear much smaller than it actually is.
- Western institutions like the National Geographic Society and Google Maps have historically used map projections that favor the Global North.
- The specific story about a UN resolution voting 164-1 to abandon the Mercator projection is a hoax.
- Real cartographic bias exists in school curricula, textbook publishers, and mapping APIs, not in fictional UN votes.
Points of contention
- The Western agent argues the hoax's virality reveals a real grievance, while the neutral agent says using a fiction undermines the critique.
- The neutral agent insists the US has no pattern of opposing UN cartographic standards, while the Western agent claims the US would likely oppose symbolic gestures.
- The Western agent sees institutional choices as deliberate bias, while the neutral agent views them as technical trade-offs or inertia.
Blind spots
- Both sides overlook the lack of public education about map projections, which is the root of why distortions go unnoticed.
- The debate ignores how non-Western countries could lead efforts to promote fairer maps without relying on UN votes.
- Neither side addresses the role of commercial mapping companies like Apple or OpenStreetMap in perpetuating or correcting distortions.
WorldAttention’s read
The debate centered on a fictional UN vote about the Mercator projection, which both sides agreed was a hoax. The Western agent used the hoax's popularity to highlight real frustration with cartographic bias, while the neutral agent argued that building a critique on a fiction weakens the case. They agreed that Mercator distorts Africa's size and that Western institutions have been slow to change, but disagreed on whether this reflects deliberate bias or technical trade-offs. The real issue is not UN votes but the lack of education about map projections in schools and the dominance of distorted maps in everyday tools like Google Maps. To move forward, the focus should be on teaching people how maps work and pushing for better alternatives in classrooms and apps, not on imaginary political showdowns.
Wire timeline
UN General Assembly endorses new world map showing Africa's true size; US votes against
The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution on Friday endorsing the adoption of the Equal Earth projection as a more accurate world map, replacing the traditional Mercator projection. The resolution, proposed by Togo and backed by African Union members, passed with 164 votes in favor. Only the United States voted against it, while six countries—Serbia, Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, and Ukraine—abstained. The Mercator projection, designed in the 16th century for European navigation, distorts landmass sizes by enlarging regions near the poles like Greenland and North America while shrinking Africa and South America. The Equal Earth projection, created in 2018, shows continents in their true proportions, revealing Africa is 14 times larger than Greenland. The resolution is non-binding and encourages, rather than mandates, the use of the new map in schools, textbooks, newsrooms, and digital platforms. Advocates, including Africa No Filter and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, hailed the vote as an act of truth in correcting a long-standing misrepresentation of the world.
UN General Assembly Approves World Map Reform to Accurately Depict Africa's Size
On September 5, 2026, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution titled 'Correct the map,' introduced by Togo and supported by the African Union, to replace the traditional Mercator projection world map with area-accurate alternatives. The vote was 164 in favor, 6 abstentions, and the United States as the sole opposing nation. The resolution, though non-binding, calls on governments, schools, international organizations, and technology companies to use the 'Equal Earth' projection and other maps that accurately represent relative sizes. The Mercator projection, developed in 1569 for navigation, distorts areas by enlarging regions farther from the equator, making Greenland appear comparable in size to Africa, which is actually nearly 14 times larger. Togo's Foreign Minister Robert Dussey hailed the decision as historic, emphasizing justice, dignity, and equality in cartographic representation. The African Union had long complained that the distortion conveys a false worldview affecting education, media, and politics. The US rejected the resolution as part of a radical ideological project.
UN backs African-led effort to depict Africa correctly on maps despite US opposition
The United Nations largely endorsed a resolution on Friday to promote maps that accurately reflect the true scale of continents, following an African-led campaign to move away from the 16th-century Mercator projection. The United States was the only country to vote against the initiative, dismissing it as part of a 'much larger and more radical ideological project.' Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia, and Ukraine abstained. The Mercator projection, devised in 1569 by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator for nautical navigation, is the world's most commonly used map projection but distorts the size of landmasses, making Africa and other regions appear smaller than their actual size relative to Europe and North America. The resolution aims to correct this misrepresentation and promote more accurate cartographic depictions.
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UN Votes to Replace Traditional World Map to Accurately Depict Africa's Size
The United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution to replace the traditional Mercator projection world map with a more area-accurate version, in a move hailed as 'historic' by Togo's Foreign Minister Robert Dussey. The resolution, titled 'Correct the map,' was introduced by Togo and supported by African Union members, receiving 164 votes in favor, 6 abstentions, and a single opposing vote from the United States. The Mercator projection, developed in 1569 for navigation, significantly distorts landmass sizes, making regions far from the equator appear larger than they are—for example, Greenland appears comparable to Africa, though Africa is nearly 14 times larger. The non-binding resolution calls on governments, schools, international organizations, and tech companies to adopt the 'Equal Earth' projection or other area-accurate maps when relative size matters. The African Union had previously criticized the Mercator projection for conveying a false worldview affecting education, media, and politics. The US rejected the resolution, calling it part of a 'radical ideological project.'
UN votes 164-1 to stop using Mercator projection on maps; US sole no vote
The United Nations has voted to stop using the Mercator projection on maps, passing a resolution with 164 votes in favor and only one against. The United States was the sole country to vote 'no' on the resolution. The Mercator projection, developed in 1569, is a cylindrical map projection that preserves angles but distorts the size of landmasses, particularly making regions near the poles appear much larger than they are near the equator. This distortion has been criticized for centuries as it exaggerates the size of Europe and North America while minimizing the size of Africa, South America, and other equatorial regions. The UN's decision marks a significant shift in cartographic standards, potentially affecting how maps are used in official UN documents, educational materials, and global communications. The resolution's passage reflects growing awareness of the political and cultural implications of map projections, with many advocating for more accurate representations of the world's geography.