The UN General Assembly voted on September 4, 2026, to adopt the Equal Earth cartographic projection, which aims to represent the relative size of continents more accurately than the traditional Mercator map.
The resolution received support from 164 countries, while the United States voted against the measure, arguing that the body should focus on more pressing global issues instead of 16th-century map projects.
France, a co-sponsor of the resolution, announced it will abandon the Mercator projection, which critics claim gives disproportionate visual prominence to North America and Europe over Africa and South Asia.