Assessing Nature: Perceptions, Knowledge and Gaps

Authors: BOWSER, GILLIAN - Colorado State University; TEMPLER, PAMELA - Boston University; HELMUTH, BRIAN - Northeastern University; HENRIQUES, SERGIO - International Union For Conservation Of Nature; Seshadri, Arathi; BALGOPAL, MEENA - Colorado State University; GRANT-HOFFMAN, MADELINE - Forest Service (FS); URBAN, MARK - University Of Connecticut; FUNK, W - Colorado State University; OSBORNE, TASHIANA - Us Agency For International Development (USAID); AKAMANI, KOFI - Southern Illinois University; DIAZ-CLARK, ELIZABETH - Colorado State University

Submitted to: Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
Publication Type: Rapid Release Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/20/2025
Publication Date: 4/2/2025
Citation: Bowser, G., Templer, P.H., Helmuth, B., Henriques, S., Seshadri, A.H., Balgopal, M., Grant-Hoffman, M.N., Urban, M.C., Funk, W.C., Osborne, T., Akamani, K., Diaz-Clark, E. 2025. Assessing Nature: Perceptions, Knowledge and Gaps. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 23:(3). https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2846.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2846

Interpretive Summary: In 2022, the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) initiated the First National Nature Assessment (NNA1) as directed by a presidential executive order addressing the need to “... take stock of U.S. lands, waters, wildlife and the benefits they provide to our economy, health, climate, environmental justice, and national security.” Moving beyond a snapshot of the status and trends of environmental features, ecosystems, and organisms, of traditional scientific assessments, NNA1 is designed to weave in the diverse perspectives and knowledge systems representative of the cultural complexity and heritage of American communities. We are the authors on the “Status, Trends and Future Projections of Nature” chapter representing marine and terrestrial ecology, genomics, entomology, science communication, psychology, natural resource management, and human dimensions of natural resources. In this editorial, we summarize the path we are taking towards the development of our NNA1 chapter based on three core questions: Where are we now, Where do we want to go, and how are we going to get there?

Technical Abstract: In 2022, the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) initiated the First National Nature Assessment (NNA1) as directed by a presidential executive order addressing the need to “... take stock of U.S. lands, waters, wildlife and the benefits they provide to our economy, health, climate, environmental justice, and national security.” For the NNA1 “Status, Trends and Future Projections of Nature” chapter, we are tasked with assessing the current scientific literature and associated knowledge sources (including museums, zoos, cultural perspectives, and federal datasets). Our chapter interlinks the social perceptions, current state of scientific information and the future data needs to understand what a future nature could look like and how such nature is uniquely shaped by American society. We argue that the interlinkages among the perceptions of people and the data available to measure the status and trends of biodiversity, shape a future nature in complex and potentially unpredictable patterns. The NNA1 is to build a “...comprehensive understanding of nature, an assessment enriched by braiding together the stories, scientific findings, Indigenous knowledge, and lived experiences of people from across the U.S.” Our perceptions of human’s place within or apart from nature, and our shared responsibilities towards nature will shape how we act as a society and wield our ability to modify landscapes. These different perceptions of nature can be based on occupation (e.g. farmer, scientist), landscape (urban, rural), or on the many social, and cultural groupings within America. We chose to build our chapter using constructive dialogues and storytelling exemplified by the Talanoa Dialogues introduced by Fiji to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and frame our exploration of the status and trends as informed by the perceptions and values of American society that in turn shape future projections of nature.