The UN-backed Equal Earth projection makes a Europe map appear smaller compared with the familiar Mercator view, the United Nations and multiple outlets reported after a General Assembly vote.
On 4 September 2026 the General Assembly “backed the Equal Earth map projection, which shows continents at their true relative sizes,” the BBC wrote, noting the change alters how Europe and North America are displayed compared with Mercator.
UN News said the Assembly “voted overwhelmingly to encourage governments” to use maps that do not shrink Africa, a shift that also reduces the visual prominence of some northern-hemisphere regions on a europe map rendered in Equal Earth.
Coverage explained the technical difference: Equal Earth is an equal-area projection that preserves relative sizes, while the Mercator projection inflates landmasses farther from the equator, making Europe and North America look larger than they are, according to the BBC and Al Jazeera.
Deutsche Welle reported that “only the United States voted against the measure,” and other outlets gave the vote as 164 in favour and one opposed, a detail cited by DW and Fox News in their coverage of the UN decision.
Advocates argued the move corrects a centuries-old visual distortion. The Correct The Map campaign said the resolution aims to “accurately represent the true size of Africa,” a change proponents say also reshuffles expectations about a europe map’s relative proportions.
Experts and explainers emphasized that Equal Earth preserves area at the cost of other properties such as straight rhumb lines used in navigation, a trade-off noted in BBC and technical summaries of map projections.
For readers tracking map politics, this development follows recent online debates about altered maps published by public figures; see reporting on maps posted by the former US president for related context.
Two recent site stories that examine public reactions to altered maps include pieces on a US flag map and an AI-generated map; both are part of a wider conversation about how maps convey power and perception.
Sources
- BBC — described the UN adoption of the Equal Earth projection and explained how it changes the apparent size of Europe and North America relative to Africa.
- UN News — reported the General Assembly “voted overwhelmingly to encourage governments” to stop using maps that make Africa look small.
- Deutsche Welle — noted that “only the United States voted against the measure” and reported the vote details.
- Al Jazeera — explained how Mercator inflates northern regions and how Equal Earth preserves relative size.
- Correct The Map — provided campaign context about the resolution and its goals to represent true sizes.
