We Europeans know that we live in the centre of the world; we must do, the maps prove it!
See what I mean? There we are, right in the middle, just above Africa.
Of course, there are good reasons for the Mercator map being drawn the way it is; it shows the shape (if not the area) of the continents pretty accurately. This map is undoubtedly eurocentric, but it was developed in Europe for use by Europeans.
However, as life in the UK is being dominated by discussion about Europe, I thought that it would be good to take a broader look at the world and Europe’s place in it.
Perhaps the most interesting way to look at the world map is the Peter’s equal area projection. This, as the name suggests, shows the size of the continents accurately, though it does rather distort their shape.
This gets even more fun, and somewhat disorientating, if you turn it upside down.
Of course, this isn’t really upside down. There is no real reason to view the earth one way up or the other – it’s only convention and familiarity that makes us choose the normal view. However, what the Peter’s projection does clearly show is that Europe is actually quite small. This small, in fact!
Another way of illustrating this is to look at the way in which the world’s population is distributed. This is a fascinating picture.
We in the UK are spending a lot of time, energy and emotion debating the EU referendum and it’s right that we should do so. Whichever way you are inclined to vote, this is something of major significance to us and to the countries around us. However, it is also good to be reminded, that in, global terms, this is a local debate; one which preoccupies the people of a small island close to a peninsula on the western edge of the Asian landmass.
The vast majority of people in the world are not debating whether Britain should leave or stay in the EU. In fact, most people are probably only vaguely aware that the referendum is happening. If you are a labourer in a Chinese megacity, the position of the UK with regard to a few other foreign countries is hardly likely to keep you awake at night.
If my experience in Africa is anything to go by, Euro 2016 will be gaining far more popular attention than the referendum. I very much doubt that crowds of people are gathering in Abidjan bars to watch Boris Johnston and David Cameron slug it out; but Ronaldo will be pulling them in.
Some believe that Britain will be best equipped to relate to the broader world as a member of the EU, others think that EU membership is a problem in this regard. I can see sense in both points of view, to be honest. However, the important thing is that we have a balanced view of the situation. There is a big old world out there and when this referendum is (thankfully) over, we will need to interact with it.
This is especially true for those of us who are Christians. The fastest growing churches and the biggest concentrations of unreached people groups all lie outside of the borders of the EU and we need to pay attention to both.
30 replies on “Not The Centre of the World”
Agreed!. When I was in the Philippines earlier this month the vast majority of people from 37 nations that I spoke to did not even know about this referendum, and cared about its outcome even less. The Europeans did know, and some did care (especially the Danes who may follow suit if we vote to leave), but even then, many saw this as a minor side issue to bigger national, regional and global crises that were having a more direct impact. More people care about Trump being the next US president, about Duterte’s cleanup campaign at the start of his Philippine presidency, the refugee crisis in the Middle East and its causative wars, and the collapsing economies and exchange rates for most African nations. And that was before we got on to the real meat of the mission of God to this broken world and the proclamation of the good news of the Kingdom! We are not at the centre, much as we try to kid ourselves.
PS – my boss is a Kiwi, and always had a map on his office wall that showed New Zealand top and centre. And why not – we make our maps, our news and our politics reflect our natural, localised biases. Doesn’t mean anyone else should be even slightly interested.
Very helpful indeed!
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RT @kouya: We Europeans know that we live in the centre of the world; we must do, the maps prove it! … https://t.co/gYj3LoF9Z0
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Hmmm… Seems to me I’ve seen this somewhere before!
https://youtu.be/vVX-PrBRtTY
🙂
Love this post. Tho based on his current play I’m not sure if Ronaldo is pulling anyone in:-D Was it wrong to be a bit happy his penalty didn’t go in?:-D
It’s barely even registered on the American (or Japanese) radar. Everyone I mention ‘the vote’ to assumes I’m talking about Trump/Clinton.
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The UK and Europe are not the centre of the world, whatever we might like to think. https://t.co/YIzVzWM611
RT @kouya: The UK and Europe are not the centre of the world, whatever we might like to think. https://t.co/YIzVzWM611
RT @kouya: The UK and Europe are not the centre of the world, whatever we might like to think. https://t.co/YIzVzWM611
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not the centre of the world – maps can highlight or distort our view of the world https://t.co/MoUgPVifRA
The UK EU #referendum is not at the centre of the world, nor even #Europe https://t.co/1AzpLLzt6o via @kouya #Remain #Brexit #BBCDebate
Actually, for Americans who listen to international news as well as what we call public funded radio, we have heard a lot of good commentary, particularly from the UK, about the implications, even globally, of this referendum, for or against, which has been very informative indeed. So I am praying for much wisdom for my British friends as they vote on this highly important issue come Thursday.
Not The Centre of the World https://t.co/8Adoc1eB5I