There's a lot going on in the world right now. The coronavirus is wrecking havoc on our communities across the globe, the economy is suffering in many places, especially the United States, it’s an election year in America, and leaders and activists are trying to ensure climate change action doesn’t get shelved to a later time.

It’s clear many Americans are unable or unwilling to interpret the data. Sheltering in place and wearing masks; these topics aren’t being discussed on a scientific basis. Part of what’s made it hard is the data in the US has become cloudy, with reporting metrics changing throughout this epidemic.

Humanity has made tremendous progress when it comes to literacy. As of a few years ago, 86% of the world’s population was literate, whereas only 200 years ago, that number was only at 12%. We still have much more work to do, but overall we are doing well at making sure every single person on the planet can read and write.

We still have much further to go when it comes to numeracy. Again, it’s apparent just by the online debates about the coronavirus or the economy or climate change. In order to solve these large, complicated problems, we must get better at conceptually understanding numbers and how to use them.

I’ve witnessed firsthand the increased focus on mathematical and logical reasoning skills in the American K-12 education environment, and these investments will pay off with the upcoming generation. But third graders don’t vote. Adults must get better at these skills (including myself at times). With the rising tide of continuous and online learning, especially the amount of free resources available, there is no excuse for any of us. There are dozens of platforms in which anyone can learn.

If we want to change the world, it’s going to take a lot of numbers.