World News for Students of English

08-09-2026 15:00

The UN General Assembly voted to replace the traditional Mercator world map with the Equal Earth map to show Africa’s true size.

Proposed by Togo and supported by 164 nations, the non-binding resolution aims to influence education and governments worldwide.

Critics argue the Mercator map distorts landmasses by making equatorial regions, such as Africa, look much smaller than countries near the poles, like Greenland or Alaska. Cartographer Clancy Wilmott explains that neither map is real; the Mercator projection was created for navigation, while equal-area projections accurately maintain geographic proportions.

The United States was the only nation to vote against the resolution and claimed it is part of an ideological movement. However, experts view this change as a practical step toward better representing global issues like aid, health, and development.

Difficult words: non-binding (an official decision or rule that people do not legally have to follow), distort (to change the shape, appearance, or meaning of something so that it is not natural or true), cartographer (a person who designs and draws maps).

You can watch the video news lower on this page.