This atlas presents a cartographic story of contemporary Europe, adopting a new visual approach to exploring European human geography and identity. The aim of the atlas is to show Europe as a whole, concentrating first on where most Europeans are, and then on how they differ from each other.

The map above shows all the large cities of Europe. Each is drawn to the size of its population, but the strength of the colour shows how much light is emitted from each city and from across the countryside of the continent. The most wasteful cities in terms of energy use are to the north and west. On this map, areas outside of the current

European boundaries are also shown, to give an idea of the continent’s immediate context. The Nile delta is clear to see, as is Moscow to the east. From this it is clear to see that outside of Europe, people are far less wasteful of energy – often they have less to waste.

There are thousands of people, mostly from Africa and Asia, risking their

lives each year to reach this very affluent continent. According to ‘The migrants files’, a project set up by a pan-European consortium of journalists joining forces to calculate accurately and report the deaths of emigrants seeking refuge in Europe, there have been at least 13,703 migrants (including 46 babies and 388 children) who died trying to enter Europe since 2000 (journalismfund.eu, 2014). This work (which includes maps of these tragic deaths) highlights the responsibilities of Europe to live up to the underpinning ideals discussed in Chapter One. Not only do these deaths put many of the issues highlighted in this atlas into a far more important perspective, they also show how lucky people are to be born and live in this continent.

Overall, the collection of demographic, social, economic and environmental maps and diagrams presented here can be used to inform debate about prospects for the future of European identity. These images also raise questions about the feasibility of different future ‘projects for Europe’ (Guibernau, 2011). They raise the issue of ‘whether Europe is becoming more united in cultural and social terms or whether, on the contrary, greater divisions are emerging among EU member states’ (Guibernau, 2011, p 35).