The brain-child of the CommonCensus Map Project, the map to the right shows some alternative boundaries to US states, ones based more on culture than politics. To draw the boundaries, the website is polling US citizens throughout the country in order to find out how far various major cities’ “spheres of influence” extend. Here’s more from the “About” section of the website:
“By combining the votes from people all over the country, the CommonCensus Map Project is showing how the country is really organized. People vote about which city they belong to, what they consider to be their local area, and which major city most influences their area, as well as what areas they most identify with personally.”
Be sure to check out the National Map (click to magnify), which was drawn using the input of tens of thousands of votes. There are also similar maps of the regions surrounding New York City and San Francisco.
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Want to give your input? Go the main page and have at it.
[Link via Cartophilia.]