Australia’s blind spot in mapping the Blue Continent
Australia’s education system leaves Pacific neighbours invisible on classroom maps, a gap the nation must close to maintain regional credibility, according to a Lowy Institute analysis by researcher Sheridan Ward.
Source: Lowy Institute · September 29, 2026 at 4:32 AM · AI-assisted report
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TOGO, AUSTRALIA, PACIFIC, UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY, BOSTON, NEW SOUTH WALES, QUEENSLAND, SOUTH AUSTRALIA, FRANCE, PANAMA, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 —
Australia’s education system leaves Pacific neighbours invisible on classroom maps, a gap the nation must close to maintain regional credibility, according to a Lowy Institute analysis by researcher Sheridan Ward.
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The United Nations General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution proposed by Togo that encourages international institutions, educational systems, publishers and digital platforms to adopt the Equal Earth Projection over the traditional Mercator projection. Togo’s Foreign Minister Robert Dussey called the initiative “cognitive justice,” arguing that maps shape collective perceptions and guide imagination.
The Mercator projection, created in 1569, preserves navigational angles for compass bearings but distorts landmass sizes — depicting Africa and Greenland as roughly equal despite Africa being 14 times larger. Equal-area alternatives are not new: the Mollweide projection dates to 1805 and the Eckerts to 1906.
Public interest surged in 2018 when Boston public schools switched to the Gall-Peters projection, inspiring cartographers Bojan Šavrič, Tom Patterson and Monash University’s Bernhard Jenny to develop the Equal Earth Projection for both aesthetic recognition and proportional accuracy.
For Australia, the stakes extend beyond cartography to diplomatic relevance. The Pacific, often called the “Blue Continent,” is a region where visibility directly impacts political engagement. Pacific Island nations are too small to appear clearly on either Mercator or Equal Earth maps, yet Australia’s relationship with these neighbours is fundamental to its foreign policy. Ward writes that claiming membership in a “Pacific Family” rings hollow if Australian children do not know their Pacific cousins exist.
Current Australian curricula fail to prioritise the region. The NSW, Queensland and South Australian education departments confirmed their syllabi do not specify which map projections to use. The national geography curriculum does not mention the Pacific except once as an optional elaboration on Polynesian expansion. Education about Oceania is widely treated as optional, unlike in France or Panama where classrooms display maps of the country, the immediate region and the world.
This educational blind spot undermines Australia’s diplomatic efforts. Diplomatic visits, kava ceremonies and promises of renewable energy transitions cannot compensate for a lack of foundational awareness. If Australians do not think often of their Pacific neighbours, they cannot be active or credible members of the community. Togo argued that adequate representation is a prerequisite for being seen on the world stage; the same logic applies to the Pacific.
The UN resolution is non-binding, meaning education systems will not adopt the new map overnight. However, it establishes a global path toward greater recognition. Australian policymakers and educators now face a choice between maintaining the status quo or aligning with emerging international standards. The map on a classroom wall is a small detail with large geopolitical consequences.
Related: Robert Dussey