The UN General Assembly has passed a resolution endorsing the use of a new world map projection designed to show the true size of continents more accurately, according to chinanews.com.cn. The vote was 164 in favor with one against, with the United States as the only country to oppose the measure, as reported by multiple outlets including guancha.cn and Sina Finance.
The resolution encourages the adoption of an "equal earth" map projection, a method that aims to correct the distortions common in traditional maps, chinanews.com.cn reports. Under the widely used Mercator projection, landmasses near the poles appear far larger than they are in reality, which has long been criticized for visually exaggerating the size of regions like Greenland and Europe while shrinking areas near the equator, including Africa.
According to China Daily, supporters of the new approach argue that the traditional map has contributed to a skewed global perspective that "underestimates" Africa and other continents. The resolution is seen as a symbolic but significant step toward promoting cartographic fairness in educational and official materials. The vote took place during a UN session, though the exact date was not specified in the reports.
