Leanne Cullen-Unsworth
Leanne Cullen-Unsworth (born 1979) is a British marine scientist who studies seagrass and works to protect it. Seagrass meadows feed hundreds of millions of people by providing food and habitat. She helped found Project Seagrass and serves as its CEO. In 2024 she was named one of the BBC's 100 most influential women.
Education and early career: She earned a bachelor’s degree in marine biology from Newcastle University, then a master’s degree from Bangor University, and a PhD from the University of Essex in 2007. She did post‑doctoral research in Australia funded by CSIRO.
Work and impact: While researching mangroves and corals in Indonesia with her partner Richard Unsworth, she learned that seagrasses are vital for local communities. This insight redirected their research toward seagrass. Their work helped found Project Seagrass, a UK charity. In 2017 she argued that seagrass is crucial for fisheries, not just for seahorses.
In 2018 she was the lead author of a Science paper calling for action to protect seagrass. She has noted that removing seagrass from UK beaches can harm ecosystems. Her research also shows that seagrass meadows support invertebrate gleaning, a basic way of gathering food in shallow water.
In 2024 she was named one of the BBC's 100 most influential women. As CEO of Project Seagrass, she helps use underwater robots to plant seagrass seeds. The project has discussed conservation plans with the Welsh government.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 09:50 (CET).