Have you ever noticed how most world maps make certain countries look bigger—or smaller—than they really are? The
Hobo-Dyer world map* was designed to change that. It not only shows landmasses in their correct proportions but also flips the traditional “north on top” view we’ve grown accustomed to.
Developed by ODT, Inc., it builds on the Peters equal-area principle, which aims to represent countries by their actual size rather than their political clout. Like the Peters projection, it promotes fairness, but with less stretching and more balanced proportions, especially near the poles.
The idea began with British cartographer Mick Dyer, who reworked the 1910 Behrmann projection. Behrmann placed its standard parallels—imaginary lines where distortion is minimal—at 30° north and south. Dyer shifted them to 37.5°, changing how the cylindrical grid wraps around the globe and giving the shapes a more natural appearance.
As part of the Cylindrical Equal Area family, the Hobo-Dyer shares the same rectangular grid of evenly spaced latitude and longitude lines seen in Lambert, Gall, Behrmann, Edwards, and
Peters projections. Its unique strength is in how it gradually flattens landmasses toward the poles while preserving accuracy between 45° north and south, where much of the world’s population lives. This balance keeps it true to scale while still being visually appealing.
Technically, it’s a normal cylindrical equal-area projection with standard parallels at 37.5°. The name “Hobo-Dyer” honors its creators—Howard Bronstein, Bob Abramms, and Mick Dyer. Bronstein and Abramms championed the idea through
ODT, Inc., Dyer drafted the projection, and it was officially released in 2002.
To encourage viewers to see the world differently, ODT
printed the map on both sides* of a placemat. One side keeps the familiar north-up orientation; the other turns the world upside down with south on top. It’s a simple flip, but it forces us to confront an overlooked truth: the way we orient maps shapes how we see the world.
Another deliberate choice was centering Australia. This change in “map focus” subtly questions the idea of which parts of the world matter most. Like the Gall-Peters projection, the Hobo-Dyer insists on equal area. Still, many find it easier on the eyes thanks to its gentler stretching in the tropics and tighter compression at the poles.
The map’s biggest public moment came in December 2002, when former U.S. President
Jimmy Carter used it during his Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. With it, he illustrated the Carter Center’s international projects, cementing the Hobo-Dyer’s role in both cartographic innovation and the broader conversation about global perspective.
