The Equal Earth projection is a concept in cartography, specifically an equal-area pseudocylindrical global map projection. It was invented in 2018 by cartographers Bojan Šavrič, Bernhard Jenny, and Tom Patterson. The projection was created to solve the problem of visually distorted landmass sizes on world maps, particularly those using the widely-used Mercator projection from the 16th century, which greatly exaggerates the size of regions near the poles, such as Greenland, while shrinking equatorial regions like Africa.
The Equal Earth projection works by ensuring that the relative area of any region on the map is preserved, meaning continents and countries are shown in their true proportions to one another. This is its key mechanism, making it an equal-area projection. It is a pseudocylindrical projection, meaning it uses straight parallels (lines of latitude) but curved meridians (lines of longitude), which gives the map a rounded outer shape that suggests the spherical form of the Earth. The projection was inspired by the visually pleasing Robinson projection (created in 1963), but unlike the Robinson projection, the Equal Earth projection retains the correct relative size of areas.
The Equal Earth projection connects to the broader concept of cartographic justice and the debate over the visual representation of the Global South. It was developed partly in response to the adoption of the Gall-Peters projection by some institutions, which is also equal-area but heavily distorts the shapes of continents. The projection has recently gained significant attention because the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on September 4, 2026, encouraging its use to phase out the Mercator projection for general-purpose world maps. This resolution, sponsored by Togo and backed by the African Union, does not mandate its use but encourages governments and institutions to adopt it for educational and technological applications.