UN approves resolution to encourage use of Equal Earth cartographic projection

Map approved by the UN to better represent the difference in area between countries. — Photo: Reproduction/equal-earth.com

The General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) approved on Friday (4) a resolution that encourages the adoption of a new way of representing the world map. The proposal, approved by 164 votes, seeks to reduce distortions in the size of continents caused by cartographic projections used for centuries.

The discussion mainly involves the Mercator projection, created in the 16th century by cartographer Gerardus Mercator to facilitate maritime navigation. The model has become one of the best-known representations of the planet and still appears on maps, educational materials and digital tools. (Understand below.)

One of the points to consider is that there is no way to perfectly transform a spherical surface, like the Earth, into a flat surface, like a sheet of paper or a screen. Every cartographic projection needs to make some type of distortion, which can affect the size, shape or location of regions.

In the Mercator projection, distortion increases as a region moves away from the equator. Thus, areas close to the poles appear larger than they really are, while regions close to the Equator appear proportionally smaller. This is why Africa, for example, may appear to be similar in size to Greenland, even though the African continent is about 14 times larger.

Comparison between the Mercator map and the new proportion approved by the UN — Photo: Reproduction / French Ministry of the Interior

Why do maps show different sizes?

Until the approval of the new model by the UN, there were two most widespread versions of the world map: the Mercator projection (the most common and best known) and the Gall-Peters projection. Each had its own scales.

Mercator projection

Created in 1569, the Mercator projection was developed to solve a practical navigation problem. It allows navigators to maintain certain directions on the map according to the compass, which helped explain its widespread use over the centuries.

To achieve this, however, the model progressively distorts the size of regions as they move away from the Equator. The meridians, which are actually at the poles, appear as parallel lines and equally spaced on the map.

The result can be seen in known comparisons:

Africa and Greenland: Greenland may appear close to the size of Africa, although Africa is about 14 times larger;

Brazil and Alaska: the two appear with similar dimensions in some representations, although Brazil is about five times larger than Alaska;

Africa and North America: Africa appears proportionally smaller, despite being approximately three times the size of North America.

On the left, Africa on the Mercator map and on the right, the continent on the new map approved by the UN — Photo: Reproduction

Gall-Peters projection

The Gall-Peters projection emerged as an alternative that prioritizes the proportional representation of the size of areas. It was originally designed by the Scotsman James Gall, in 1855, and published decades later by the German historian Arno Peters.

In this model, the continents appear with area proportions closer to the real ones. The main visual difference in relation to Mercator is that regions that seemed relatively large on the traditional map, such as Europe, now occupy a smaller area, while Africa appears significantly larger.

This does not mean, however, that Gall-Peters is a perfect representation of the planet. Just like any projection, it is an attempt to represent a curved surface on a flat surface and therefore involves other distortions.

Furthermore, the difference between the maps does not mean that there is one "right" and the other "wrong". Projections are different ways of representing the Earth's curved surface on a plane, and each prioritizes certain characteristics.

World map according to Gall-Peters projection — Photo: Wikimedia Commons

New model approved by the UN: what changes?

The resolution approved by the UN encourages governments, international organizations and other institutions to consider models that more closely represent the real dimensions of landmasses. The initiative is known as "Correct the map" and is supported by the African Union.

The model supported by the campaign is Equal Earth, called "Equal Earth" in UN material. The projection seeks to better preserve the proportions between the continents and offer a closer representation of the real areas of the different regions of the planet.

The proposal also starts from the idea that maps are not just for locating countries and continents. They are used in schools, teaching materials, media, official documents and digital tools and, therefore, help to form the image that people have of the dimensions and position of different regions of the world.

According to the resolution, distortions can have cognitive, educational, cultural and even geopolitical effects. The change advocated by the UN therefore seeks to encourage a representation closer to the real dimensions of the territories.

What changes in practice?

New map approved by the UN. — Photo: Reproduction

UN approval does not mean that the Mercator map will stop being used immediately. The resolution acts as an incentive for governments, international organizations and other institutions to consider different and more appropriate projections to represent the size of landmasses.

In practice, the main change is in the way the continents will be visually compared.

On a Mercator-based map, countries and regions near the poles are magnified. With a projection that better preserves areas, such as Equal Earth, Africa, South America and other regions close to the Equator begin to occupy a proportion closer to the proportion on the map than they have in reality.

This means that a person who learns geography through this type of representation will be able to more faithfully visualize the difference in size between continents and countries. Africa, for example, stops appearing close in size to Greenland and starts to be presented with a proportionally much larger size.

In other words, the change has nothing to do with a change in the actual size of the continents — they remain exactly as they are. What changes is the way its dimensions are represented on a flat map.

It is precisely this difference that is at the center of the discussion: there is not a single map capable of perfectly reproducing a spherical Earth on a sheet or screen. The choice of a projection determines which features will be preserved and which will be distorted.