Len Guelke has a Ph. D. in geography from the University of
Toronto. His early career involved cartographic positions in
Edinburgh, Scotland and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada where he
worked on school and regional atlases. As a university
educator at the University of Waterloo he taught full-time
for 30 years. During his tenure there he pursued his
cartographic interests by playing an active role in the
Canadian Cartographic Association, writing and editing
material on cartographic topics and publishing specialty
maps.
The city-centered map he is probably most famous for is an
azimuthal world map centered on Toronto, which became a
popular poster. In 1997 The Canadian Cartographic
Association honored Len with its “Award of Distinction”. As
a retiree he has extended his earlier interest in
cartography and map projections employing GIS computer
skills to produce a wide variety of custom maps. He has
created many maps on equidistant azimuthal projections
prepared for a variety of individuals and groups, including
a Mecca-centered world map for the Canadian Islamic Council.
In 2007 he played a major role in the equal area map of the
USA published by ODT.
Guelke has created many maps on equidistant azimuthal
projections prepared for a variety of individuals and
groups, including a Mecca-centered world map for the
Canadian Islamic Council.