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ABSTRACT Scientific misinformation is a defining challenge of our time. As public trust in science declines and falsehoods spread faster than facts, the scientific community must rethink its role in public discourse. This Perspective draws on a scenario-based workshop entitled ‘Truth Matters: Strengthening Science Communication to Counter Misinformation’, conducted at the 20th International Congress of Developmental Biology in San Juan, Puerto Rico (June 2025), designed to train scientists in emotionally attuned, culturally responsive and effective communication strategies. At the joint conference with the International Society of Developmental Biology, the Society for Developmental Biology and the Latin American Society for Developmental Biology, we explored why misinformation persists, how identity and social belonging shape belief, and why empathy, not just evidence, is essential to making truth resonate. Here, we offer a call to action along with practical tools: to make scientific knowledge meaningful, we must communicate effectively and ensure it resonates with the broader public. 

ABSTRACT The field of developmental biology has declined in prominence in recent decades, with off-shoots from the field becoming more fashionable and highly funded. This has created inequity in discovery and opportunity, partly due to the perception that the field is antiquated or not cutting edge. A ‘think tank’ of scientists from multiple developmental biology-related disciplines came together to define specific challenges in the field that may have inhibited innovation, and to provide tangible solutions to some of the issues facing developmental biology. The community suggestions include a call to the community to help ‘rebrand’ the field, alongside proposals for additional funding apparatuses, frameworks for interdisciplinary innovative collaborations, pedagogical access, improved science communication, increased diversity and inclusion, and equity of resources to provide maximal impact to the community.