The world may soon see more maps that look different from the familiar version used in classrooms, books and digital platforms. The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution promoting the Equal Earth projection, a map design that represents the relative size of continents more accurately than the widely used Mercator projection.

The resolution, led by Togo and supported by African countries, was approved on Friday with 164 countries voting in favour, six abstaining and the United States voting against it. The move does not alter national borders or the actual geographical size of any country. Instead, it seeks to change how the Earth's curved surface is represented on a flat map. 

Africa Will Look Much Larger

The biggest visual difference will be seen in Africa.

The Mercator projection, developed by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569, stretches areas increasingly as they move towards the North and South Poles. This makes Europe, North America and Greenland appear much larger relative to countries and continents closer to the Equator.

The Equal Earth projection, introduced in 2018, is designed to preserve the relative area of land masses more accurately. Under it, Africa appears substantially larger in comparison with Europe and North America.

One commonly cited example is Greenland. On a Mercator map, Greenland can appear comparable in size to Africa. In reality, Africa is about 14 times larger than Greenland.

Why the UN Wants a Different Projection

The campaign behind the resolution argues that map projections influence how people understand the world.

Togo and African Union supporters have said that the longstanding visual distortion of Africa has contributed to an inaccurate perception of the continent's geographical scale and importance. The African Union welcomed the UN resolution, calling it a step towards fairer and more accurate cartographic representation. (African Union)

Togo's Foreign Minister Robert Dussey has described the initiative as going beyond cartography, linking it to education, historical perceptions and how different regions are viewed globally.

The resolution therefore encourages governments, educational institutions and other organisations to consider more accurate area-based representations when producing world maps. 

Why Did the US Vote Against It?

The United States was the only country to vote against the resolution.

Washington criticised the initiative as an ideological exercise and argued that the UN should concentrate on more pressing international challenges rather than debates surrounding historical map projections.

The US position reflects a broader disagreement over the political and historical arguments attached to the campaign. Supporters see the move as correcting a longstanding distortion, while critics argue that the issue has been given an ideological dimension. 

The overwhelming vote in favour, however, shows that the initiative received broad international backing.

What Will Change for India?

For India, nothing changes geographically or legally.

India's territory, international boundaries and actual area remain exactly the same. The change concerns only the projection used to display the Earth on a flat surface.

India is located considerably closer to the Equator than countries such as Canada, Russia and Greenland. Consequently, the difference between its apparent and actual area is not as dramatic as it is for regions at very high latitudes.

However, when India is viewed alongside northern countries on an Equal Earth map, its relative size can appear more proportionate.

So the answer to the question of whether India's area is increasing is no. What changes is the visual comparison between India and other countries.

Will Mercator Maps Disappear?

Not immediately—and the UN resolution does not legally require them to disappear.

The resolution is non-binding. It encourages the wider adoption of projections that represent continental areas more accurately but does not prohibit governments, publishers, technology companies or individuals from continuing to use Mercator maps.

Mercator also remains particularly useful for navigation because of its ability to preserve angles and directions. The UN initiative does not seek to eliminate its use for purposes where that characteristic is useful. (Reuters)

The likely impact will instead be gradual, particularly in education, institutional mapping, media graphics and digital platforms.

Why the Old Map Distorts the World

The fundamental problem comes from trying to represent a spherical planet on a flat sheet.

No flat world map can preserve every geographical property perfectly. Different projections therefore prioritise different characteristics, such as direction, distance, shape or area.

Mercator prioritises certain navigational properties, but the trade-off is significant distortion of area at higher latitudes.

That is why Europe and North America can appear disproportionately large while Africa and other equatorial regions look smaller than their actual size.

The Equal Earth projection takes a different approach by focusing on relative area, allowing viewers to compare the size of continents more realistically.

What Happens Next?

The immediate change will not be that every map in the world is replaced.

Instead, the UN resolution is expected to encourage countries, schools, publishers, technology companies and mapping organisations to consider Equal Earth and other area-accurate projections.

Togo has been at the forefront of the campaign, while the African Union has formally backed the initiative. The AU said the adoption of the resolution represented an important step towards more accurate representation of Africa and other regions. 

For ordinary map users, the most noticeable difference will therefore be visual: Africa will look much closer to its true relative size, while Europe, North America and Greenland will appear smaller compared with it.

The Earth itself, of course, has not changed. Only the way humans choose to draw it has.