African Union Commission Backs Campaign to Replace Mercator With Equal Earth

Overview

• The Commission formally joined the Correct the Map campaign in August 2025, urging adoption of the Equal Earth projection in education and research.
• The initiative targets the Mercator map’s area bias, which makes Greenland appear similar in size to Africa even though Africa is roughly 14 times larger.
• Equal Earth, created in 2018 by Bojan Šavrič, Tom Patterson and Bernhard Jenny, preserves relative land area while offering a familiar world view.
• Supporters including Africa No Filter and Speak Up Africa say distorted maps shape perceptions and can reinforce unequal views of the continent.
• News reports note that major digital platforms such as Google Maps still display Mercator-style views, with no public commitment to change reported.