Now that #CaboVerde's #WorldCup run is complete, it's time you figured out why some people call it that and others call it "Cape Verde": www.polgeonow.com/2014/01/icym... (article from 2014) #CapeVerde #Fıfaworldcup #geography #geopolitics #namechange #Portuguese #FIFA #sports #soccer #football

Many of us know people who celebrate getting US or European #citizenship as a life milestone. Now meet the people who are excited to become official citizens of #Syria: syriadirect.org/denied-for-d... #geography #Kurds #diplomacy #travel #passport #passports

If you're interested in which countries aren't allowed in #WorldCup tournaments - and which non-countries are - make sure to check out our updated explainer on #FIFA's membership roster: www.polgeonow.com/2026/06/worl... #worldcup2026 #geography #geographyteacher #soccer #independence #sports

#WorldCup2026: For those who have been waiting, we present: Our updated and heavily-revised explainer on which countries are and aren't in #FIFA! www.polgeonow.com/2026/06/worl... #geography #football #soccer #independence #geographyteacher #WorldCup #FIFAWorldCup #sports

Pretty nifty interactive map of conflict, control, and mining in #CentralAfricanRepublic from Global Initiative and ISS Africa. Territorial control as of Sep 2025, sources unclear. centralafrica.globalinitiative.net/conflict-and... #conflictmapping #geography #geopolitics #borderlands

Eye-catching report from @hrw.org shines new light on an interesting corner of current #geopolitics: #UAE-employed mercenaries from #Colombia fighting alongside #Sudan's rogue #RSF forces (and implicated in likely #warcrimes and #genocide): www.hrw.org/news/2026/05... #geography #LatinAmerica

Excellent from Claire Wilmot on the 'Gold Rush' in Tigray, connections to the war economy and effects on civilians www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4... Complements well and expands our understanding from a couple of recent analyses: 1/3

For people studying political geography or the history of South Asia, this looks pretty cool. public.flourish.studio/visualisatio... #PrincelyStates #geography #sovereignty #geopolitics #borders #SouthAsia #independence

This October, #Alberta province plans to hold a vote on whether to have a vote for #independence from #Canada. Likely to result in "no". #Secession leaders no longer want to join the #USA. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/21/w... #geography #separatism #geopolitics #Americas #nationalism

Interesting introduction to a growing grassroots geopolitical movement in some parts of the world. #geopolitics #indigeneity

#Ahmadinejad's journey from brash enemy of #Israel to barely-concealed Israeli asset is yet another reminder that reporting shouldn't repeat people's declared beliefs/intentions as facts (maybe he really changed his mind, maybe not). www.nytimes.com/2026/05/19/u... #Iran #journalism #espionage

Report in @newhumanitarian.bsky.social says #M23 rebel govt in east #DRCongo charges US$50-500 for "entry visas" (very steep by world standards!), and at first wanted to also stamp #passports. www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news/2026/05... #travel @defactoborders.bsky.social #geography #geopolitics

Perhaps useful to #Myanmar researchers?

This headline is probably an exaggeration and definitely missing context - notice how it's specifically a version of #Palestine that includes all areas currently part of #Israel - but still an interesting example of how map-based shapes of countries play a big role as political symbols in society.

The UK has received its first fleet of 20 uncrewed vessels under Project Beehive, with the First Sea Lord confirming a wargame showed missile capacity tripling and mission success rising markedly. https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/royal-navy-receives-first-sizable-uncrewed-vessel-fleet/

Nice photo essay from @crisisgroup.org showing on-the-ground reality of separation between Republic of #Cyprus and internationally-unrecognized Turkish Republic of #NorthernCyprus. #geography #defacto #independence #Mediterranean #Europe #geopolitics #islands

The attacks in #Mali "represent a major escalation in the conflict, a new stage reached by armed groups," @jhjezequel.bsky.social @sahel.crisisgroup.org tells @ruthmaclean.bsky.social @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/04/25/w...

A fun thing to do whenever a news organization posts a story depicting forlorn, seemingly isolated ancient ruins is to find them on Google Maps and then zoom out

A new island was just discovered in Antarctica. And it definitely isn't an iceberg. The 'dirty iceberg' spotted by RV Polarstern in the Weddell Sea turned out to be a rocky island 130 metres long & 50 metres wide. The naming process is underway.

A coordinated offensive across #Mali on 25 April targeted key locations, including Bamako, Kati, Gao, & Kidal. The spread of attacks across these strategic locations points to a coordinated attempt to challenge state authority across Mali. Latest insights: acleddata.com/expert-comme...

News broke today that US forces have finished withdrawing from Qasrak, their last major base in #Syria. The base is labeled on our Syria control map from last month, which is otherwise still up-to-date: www.polgeonow.com/2026/03/syri... #MiddleEast #MENAsky #geopolitics #geography #military

Cool blog post on using this new NASA photo to think about geography. #geography #geographyteacher #cartography

Good video report from frontlines of still-ongoing #Puntland vs. #ISIS war in northern #Somalia by Bastien Renouil, @willswanson.bsky.social, and @artefr.bsky.social for @france24.com. (Apparently shot last Nov.) www.france24.com/en/somalia-i... #geopolitics #conflictzone #security #armedgroups

Quillette magazine article stealing our Sudan control map. It's credited to avoid plagiarism, but using it without our permission is still (illegal) copyright violation, and a well-known publication should really know better. #Sudan #geopolitics #geography #copyright #iplaw #maps #mapping

Quillette magazine article stealing our Sudan control map. It's credited to avoid plagiarism, but using it without our permission is still (illegal) copyright violation, and a well-known publication should really know better. #Sudan #geopolitics #geography #copyright #iplaw #maps #mapping

Check out this recent report from @newhumanitarian.bsky.social on one year of life under rebel rule in a city of 2 million people - #Goma, DR #Congo. Local reporter doesn't exotify the place at all - could be my hometown or yours (maybe it is). www.thenewhumanitarian.org/opinion/firs... #geography

#Yemen's large island, #Socotra, was an ecotourism destination. Now its peaceful reputation is marred by infighting fueled by Saudi and Emirati influencers. This detailed report brings things up to date. www.polgeonow.com/2026/02/who-...

Nice piece from @newhumanitarian.bsky.social summarizing what's happened in #Tigray since 2022 ceasefire and what scenarios look likely in the near future among fears of renewed #Ethiopia-#Eritrea war. www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/202... #HornOfAfrica #geopolitics #geography #conflict

Heard a lot about recent events in #Yemen, but not much about #Socotra? We've got you covered with our new (free) supplement: "Who controls Socotra after #UAE pullout?" www.polgeonow.com/2026/02/who-... #MiddleEast #geography #geopolitics #borderlands #SaudiArabia #independence MENAsky #intsec

New #Yemen control map report for subscribers brings our coverage up to the present, with #SouthYemen separatists having badly lost their gambit for #independence. More info: www.polgeonow.com/2026/02/yeme... #MiddleEast #maps #geopolitics #Saudi_Arabia #geography #defacto #map #politics #MENAsky

Interesting article (with map) about US law-designated "border zone" for immigration enforcement purposes, which includes most of the country's major cities and some whole states.

From last month, some more good journalism on " #KingdomOfPapaala" on #Bougainville, probably the world's most country-like #micronation, led by financial scammer Noah Musingku www.occrp.org/en/feature/m... #independence #geography #micronations #PapuaNewGuinea #politicaleconomy #Melanesia

United States membership in the UN's World Health Organization officially ended a few days ago, at the end of the legally-required one-year waiting period from country's withdrawal announcement last year. #intergovernmental #geopolitics #geography #UnitedNation

"This is rather dramatic but lost in the general media turmoil over everything else - 🇺🇸 is withdrawing from 66 international organizations and treaties, most notably everything connected with climate change, democracy and rule of law." www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...

Major political geography event: #BBNJ aka " #HighSeasTreaty" takes effect today, meaning new laws governing environmental protection in intl. waters are now binding on 81 countries that have so far ratified it, including #Brazil, #China, #Japan, #France news.un.org/en/story/202... #geography #ocean

For the people who think it's bad that English speakers have English names for countries that don't match the country's local-language name. (This holds for probably every language on Earth, by the way.)

New #Yemen control #map + report for our subscribers! This one shows the height of separatist control last month (the later reversals will be covered in a future report): www.polgeonow.com/2026/01/sout... #SouthYemen #independence #geography #MiddleEast #RedSea #Houthis #GulfOfAden #Menasky #UAE

Dear @washingtonpost.com: Three of the US's aircraft carriers have their home port within 12 miles of the border with #Mexico (in #SanDiego). Entering "waters near #LatinAmerica" is not the story here. Did you mean #SouthAmerica? #geography #geographyfail #factcheck #Venezuela

#Egypt's New Administrative Capital has rebranded itself as "The New Capital". Officially, #Cairo is no longer the country's capital, though some government bodies still operate from there. egyptianstreets.com/2025/11/09/e... #geography #toponymy #worldmap #rename #MiddleEast #Africa

Can't wait to read this one!

Honored for our #Somalia control #map to have been featured in the second installment of @newhumanitarian.bsky.social's "rebel rule" series on #rebelgovernance in areas outside control of official govts. #geography #defactostates #AlShabaab #HornOfAfrica www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/202...

NOW (as of yesterday) #Canada really does say it's planning to recognize #Palestine as an independent country (in Sept., like #France). www.reuters.com/world/middle... #geography #independence #Gaza #WestBank #GazaStrip #Israel #geopolitics #PalestinianAuthority #diplomacy #MiddleEast #GazaWar

#UK plans to recognize #Palestine as independent country if no #Gaza ceasefire by Sept. If #France also follows through, this would leave #USA as last UN Security Council veto-holder that doesn't consider Palestine a country. www.nbcnews.com/world/united... #geography #Israel #MiddleEast #Menasky

#FactCheck: #Canada has apparently NOT so far followed #France in announcing plans to recognize #Palestine as independent country, despite today's Middle East Monitor headline claiming that. More recent source: www.cbc.ca/news/politic... #geography #Israel #independence #MiddleEast #WestBank #Gaza

Geology rocks, but geography is where it’s at. #dadjokes #yqr #regina #Saskatchewan #canada #rocks #geology #geography #maps #puns #jokes

And here's our article covering what's changed for the #SchengenArea #map over the last five years, with the addition of #Croatia, #Bulgaria, and #Romania creating an uninterrupted land bridge to #Greece for the first time: www.polgeonow.com/2025/07/sche... #geography #Schengen #maps #EU #Europe

Besides the #EU one, we've also updated our popular #SchengenArea #map and explainer - this one for the first time since 2020! Which means THREE new member countries have been added. www.polgeonow.com/2020/03/what... #geography #EuropeanUnion #Europe #Schengen #maps #cartography #mapping #travel

We've just revised and updated our popular #EuropeanUnion #map and explainer for the first time since 2023. The biggest change is the addition of #Georgia as an official membership candidate. www.polgeonow.com/2016/06/map-... #maps #cartography #EU #Europe #geography #geopolitics #mapping

#France says it plans to recognize #Palestine as an independent country in Sept. About 3/4 of world's countries already recognize it, but France would be the most powerful Western-aligned government do so yet. www.france24.com/en/live-news... #geography #defacto #independence #Israel #geopolitics

UPDATE: #Seborga did release a statement yesterday on man arrested in #India for alleged scams including fraudulent claims of diplomatic privileges in the name of it and other #micronations: www.principatodiseborga.com/wp-content/u... #micronation #geography #independence #borders