Maps are powerful political tools shaping a nation’s past, present and future – counter maps allow everyday people to reclaim the narrative

From who gets to vote to how people travel and where taxpayer dollars are funneled, politicians and urban planners wield maps to control public imagination.

By: Patty Heyda, Washington University in St. Louis, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: June 1, 2026

Words: 1,181

Last Updated: 1 month, 3 weeks ago

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By Patty Heyda, Washington University in St. Louis

Throughout time, maps have been useful tools for those in power to stake their claim over territories and markets. Politicians start nationwide redistricting battles to ensure partisan control, weakening the power of voters. The Trump administration’s geopolitical posturing over Greenland builds on a long history of imperialism aided by maps. And in ancient Rome, the Peutinger map depicted vast ideas of empire by placing …

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