Russia’s movement into Crimea is a tricky issue for cartographers, and mapmaking organizations are responding to it in different ways. Rand McNally looks to the State Department for guidance, according to a spokeswoman, so it will not be adding Crimea to Russia’s territory. National Geographic, however, is planning to include the territory as part of Russia, assuming that the annexation is approved by Russia’s parliament. “We map de facto, in other words we map the world as it is, not as people would like it to be,” said Juan Jose Valdes, the organization’s geographer. However, Valdes noted it would be shaded to indicate its special status.
__AAG Smartbrief, March 20, 2014
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