It can be easy to think of data as something that is always "true" and totally neutral. But... it's not. There are plenty of ways that data can be misused and misconstrued for harm. As educators and nonprofit leaders, we need to be not only aware of these issues but also actively work to deconstruct them and share about them with others.

Take a look at this 2015 article from Vu Le - "Weaponized data: How the obsession with data has been hurting marginalized communities" and let us know what you think.

Is data equity and/or the "dark side of data" something that you talk about with your students or colleagues? How can we as environmental educators be cognizant of the ways that data can be misused or misconstrued for harm? How can we actively uproot these practices?

If you're looking for more resources on how to center equity when working with data, take a look at this framework from We All Count.