A Cartographic Correction: The UN's Shift Away from Mercator The United Nations' decision to abandon the 16th century Mercator map is a significant step towards a more accurate representation of our world.
For centuries, the Mercator projection has distorted the true sizes and shapes of continents, perpetuating a skewed perception of geography that favors Europe and North America at the expense of Africa and other regions.
The adoption of the Equal Earth cartographic projection, developed by a group of cartographers in 2018, is a welcome correction to this centuries old error.