MOSAIC - The training kit for Euro-Mediterranean youth work

3
357
Tips for the facilitator
The activity works better in international groups because the scale of the Idrisi map
hardly allows for the identification of cities. You can get a full-colour copy (copyright
free) from wikimedia.org by searching for “Idrisi world map”. This is much more practical
and clear to use with a digital projector.
Collect other historical or physical maps of the world that show different perspectives.
The website http://nonformality.org has a large selection of maps for educational purposes.
You can see other “upside-down” maps at http://flourish.org/upsidedownmap/.
Variations
You may take the activity one step further by inviting participants, in pairs or small
groups, to place themselves in the others’ perspective by “looking” at what the others
see, from the place where they live or were born, to their north, south, east and west.
Using programmes like Google Earth, for example, can be very useful to show others
what you see when you look at where the sun rises and sets.
If you have time and you feel that the group is interested, you may organise small-group
discussions of the following statement by James S. Aber: “Any map is the product of
human endeavor, and as such may be subject to unwitting errors, misrepresentation,
bias, or outright fraud.”
Do participants agree with the statement?
Do they have examples that could illustrate the point of the author?
Should we refrain from using maps in Euro-Mediterranean activities?
More maps! If you have the time, you can provide another example of south-on-top
maps with the semi-circular one reproduced below. You can challenge participants to
identify specific towns because many of the names on it are legible. The Old Slavic
map provides a very interesting perspective from the Russian/Slavic point of view.
Ideas for action
Encourage the group to research and share other representations of the world.
Suggestions for follow-up
If you want to continue with mutual perceptions of history, try Activity No. 13 “Making
memories”.
The activity “All equal – all different”, in Compass, provides an interesting insight of
some views of the world by an Arab/Spanish scholar of the Middle Ages.
Further information
You may want to do more research about maps and how they reflect particular views of the
world. In any case, the few lines below give you a little information to start with.
Abu Abd Allah Muhammad al-Idrisi al-Qurtubi al-Hasani al-Sabti, or simply El Idrisi (1100–
1165 or 1166), the author of the map being presented, was an Arab geographer, cartographer
and traveller from Ceuta.
Orange Blue