Action in uncertainty: Data-driven decisions that acknowledge emotional responses and transcendental connections

The increasing uncertainty with global change often stifles action and results in calls for more data before moving beyond status quo environmental decisions (Mahapatra & Ratha 2017; Ripple et al. 2017; Montefalcone et al. 2025). Advancing science and collecting more data is crucial; however, science alone (i.e., “western” or “positivist” science, as described in Fuller, 2001; Reid et al. 2020) may be insufficient to reduce uncertainty to a comfortable level for decision making. Therefore, increasing personal and collective capacity to make proactive decisions may require decision makers to recognize that their own understanding of the world, and therefore interpretation of scientific data, is influenced by all Four Realms of human perception: Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Transcendental (Wolf 2017; Dukes et al. 2021; Clifford et al. 2022). In the ESA Special Session, Action in Uncertainty, we introduced four questions to help participants increase cognitive awareness of how all Four Realms may affect their understanding in uncertain environmental decision contexts: 1. Physical: How do I observe uncertainty through the five senses (feel, see, hear, taste, smell)? The physical realm is what people observe, including ecological data observations and experimentation. 2. Mental: How do I think about uncertainty using logic, reason, and language-based understanding? The mental realm is how people think about the world, including scientific theory, modeling, and decision frameworks. 3. Emotional: How do I feel in uncertainty? The emotional realm is a person’s subjective emotional state, such as fear, curiosity, defensiveness, and awe. 4. Transcendental: How do I connect to something greater than myself in uncertainty? The transcendental realm includes people’s sense of purpose, responsibility for others, or moral code.