{"id":1819,"date":"2026-09-06T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/?post_type=briefing&p=1819"},"modified":"2026-09-06T06:14:32","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T21:14:32","slug":"2026-09-06-un-equal-area-world-map-en","status":"publish","type":"briefing","link":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/briefing\/2026-09-06-un-equal-area-world-map-en\/","title":{"rendered":"UN urges equal-area world maps after 164-to-1 vote"},"content":{"rendered":"

2026-09-06 05:58 KST<\/strong><\/p>\n

On September 4, the UN General Assembly backed a resolution by 164 votes to one encouraging governments, schools, international organizations and technology companies to use maps that show continents at more accurate relative sizes. The campaign highlights how the Mercator projection makes Africa appear much smaller than it is.<\/p>\n

The resolution does not ban Mercator or require Equal Earth everywhere. It is a non-binding recommendation to match a projection to its purpose: angle-preserving maps remain useful for navigation, while equal-area maps are better for comparing size.<\/p>\n

What was adopted?<\/h2>\n

Togo led the negotiations for the African Group. Six countries abstained and the United States cast the sole opposing vote. The text encourages equal-area projections in education, public information and digital services when size comparison matters.<\/p>\n

Why does Africa look small?<\/h2>\n

No flat map can preserve shape, direction, distance and area at once. Mercator preserves local angles but increasingly enlarges land toward the poles, making equatorial Africa look too small beside northern regions.<\/p>\n

\"UN
This AI-generated image explains the topic; it is not a photograph of the actual event, observation, or experiment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What does Equal Earth change?<\/h2>\n

Equal Earth, introduced in 2018, preserves area while keeping familiar-looking continental outlines. It still distorts other properties, so it is not a universal map for every task.<\/p>\n

What may change in practice?<\/h2>\n

The vote does not instantly alter textbooks or apps. Governments, schools and platforms must choose new defaults or add projection options; implementation dates will differ.<\/p>\n

What remains to check?<\/h2>\n

Watch the final UN document, national education guidance and major mapping services. Correcting area does not settle borders or sovereignty disputes; the decision concerns how scale is represented.<\/p>\n

Primary sources and independent checks<\/h2>\n

UN \uacf5\uc2dd \uc124\uba85<\/a><\/p>\n

UN \uc9c0\uc18d\uac00\ub2a5\uc9c0\ub3c4 \uc81c\uc791 \uc9c0\uce68<\/a><\/p>\n

Global Issues\uc758 UN News \uc7ac\uac8c\uc2dc<\/a><\/p>\n

\ub3c5\uc77c ARD \ub3c5\ub9bd \ud655\uc778<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The UN General Assembly encouraged equal-area projections when relative size matters. It did not ban Mercator or mandate a single replacement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":[],"class_list":["post-1819","briefing","type-briefing","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/briefing\/1819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/briefing"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/briefing"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}