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17 Communicating Under Uncertainty As the transportation planning industry strives to find ways to anticipate impacts under highly unstable conditions, planners and modelers are also challenged to communicate this uncertainty to senior decision makers and elected officials. How does a responsible planning or modeling professional present forecasts that are steeped in uncertainty without leaving decision makers in high-risk situations and leaving stakeholders suspicious? Research in the field of neuroscience holds tips that provide a framework for communicating during deep uncertainty. Sim- ply put, the brain can be understood as having two electrical circuits: reward and threat. The intent is to present information to leaders in such a way that the reward circuitry is maximized and the threat circuitry is minimized. The goal is to intention- ally communicate what is certain while being clear about uncer- tainty and to emphasize where there is control while being honest about where there is no control. MatejKastelic/Shutterstock.com
