UN Changed the World Map — Why Africa Looked Small

The map on your classroom wall made Greenland look as big as Africa. Africa is about 14 times larger.

On 4 September 2026 the UN General Assembly passed “Correct the Map.” Vote: 164 yes, 1 no (United States), 6 abstentions. India voted yes. The resolution is not binding and does not ban Mercator for ships or planes. It urges schools, governments, and digital maps to use Equal Earth and other equal-area projections when size matters.

In this episode: why Mercator stretches the poles, what Equal Earth changes on screen, what France and Togo will do next, and why no flat map of a round planet is perfect.

world map, UN vote, Mercator projection, Equal Earth, true size of countries, Africa, Greenland, geography explainer.