Overview
Background
I grew up in Seattle in the Pacific Northwest of the US, and spent my childhood in on and around the water. I have a Bachelors in Environmental Studies from Yale University (on the Long Island Sound, not the most beautiful body of water) and a Masters in Applied Marine Science from the University of Cape Town (surrounded by stunning vibrant incredible ocean!). I’ve been lucky to work on a wide variety of conservation and management projects around the world, including Latin America, Africa, and more recently Oceania and Southeast Asia. As a marine scientist, I'm passionate about all things fisheries, except actually doing the fishing (which I am very bad at). I’m also one of the few surfers who wants to see more sharks in the water. My research straddles the marine conservation and fisheries management fields, including work with fisher behaviour and bycatch reduction (see here for some featured projects), fishing impacts on threatened marine species, and seafood trade dynamics. Ultimately, my interest is improving the environmental and socioeconomic sustainability of fishing and seafood in Australia and globally.
Here at UQ I am a member of the UQ Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science and the Ocean Conservation Team led by A/Prof Carissa Klein.
Availability
- Dr Leslie Roberson is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
- Associate Fellow, CSIRO, CSIRO
Research interests
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Fisheries management
I work on many issues related to fisheries, including monitoring, control, and surveillance and bycatch mitigation. I work closely with a variety of government and industry partners.
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Sustainable seafood
I am interested in global protein provision and how seafood can contribute to food security, and what seafood "sustainability" means in terms of livelihoods and the ecosystems impacted by fishing
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Marine conservation
Although I have experience with evaluation and planning of marine protected areas, my current interests focus on other conservation measures - mostly effective fisheries management
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Biodiversity protection
I was always interested in protection of the natural environment, but a trip to the Galapagos Islands during a study abroad in Ecuador in 2008 sealed the deal for me. After that summer, I changed my Major to Environmental Science and have since specialized in marine conservation
Works
Search Professor Leslie Roberson’s works on UQ eSpace
2025
Journal Article
Fishery bycatch rates largely driven by variation in individual vessel behaviour
Roberson, Leslie A. and Wilcox, Chris (2025). Fishery bycatch rates largely driven by variation in individual vessel behaviour. Nature Sustainability, 8 (8), 871-881. doi: 10.1038/s41893-025-01602-z
2025
Journal Article
Opportunity to leverage tactics used by skilled fishers to address persistent bycatch challenges
Roberson, Leslie A., Brown, Christopher J., Klein, Carissa J., Game, Edward T. and Wilcox, Chris (2025). Opportunity to leverage tactics used by skilled fishers to address persistent bycatch challenges. Fish and Fisheries, 26 (2), 193-202. doi: 10.1111/faf.12873
2025
Journal Article
A new seafood import policy for nations to combat illegal fishing
Roberson, Leslie, Hosch, Gilles, Wilcox, Chris, Domiguez-Martinez, Rosa Mar, Sant, Glenn and Klein, Carissa (2025). A new seafood import policy for nations to combat illegal fishing. Conservation Letters, 18 (1) e13091. doi: 10.1111/conl.13091
2024
Journal Article
Environmental law reform needed to manage trade of Australia’s threatened marine species
Dominguez-Martinez, Rosa Mar, Roberson, Leslie, Gephart, Jessica, Wilcox, Chris, Sant, Glenn and Klein, Carissa (2024). Environmental law reform needed to manage trade of Australia’s threatened marine species. npj Ocean Sustainability, 3 (1) 45. doi: 10.1038/s44183-024-00085-3
2024
Other Outputs
A new seafood import policy for nations to combat illegal fishing
Roberson, Leslie, Hosch, Gilles, Wilcox, Chris, Dominguez Martinez, Rosa Mar, Sant, Glenn and Klein, Carissa (2024). A new seafood import policy for nations to combat illegal fishing. doi: 10.20944/preprints202401.1003.v2
2023
Other Outputs
Ecological risk assessment of cetaceans to Indian Ocean tuna fisheries
Kiszka, Jeremy J., Marchant, Katrina and Roberson, Leslie (2023). Ecological risk assessment of cetaceans to Indian Ocean tuna fisheries. Technical Report Victoria Mahé, Seychelles: Indian Ocean Tuna Commission.
2023
Other Outputs
Measures to prevent the importation of illegal, unreported and unregulated seafood: Discussion paper
Hosch, Gilles, Roberson, Leslie, Cottrell, Richard, Harrison, Emily, Klein, Carissa, Domiguez-Martinez, Rosa Mar, Sant, Glenn and Wilcox, Chris (2023). Measures to prevent the importation of illegal, unreported and unregulated seafood: Discussion paper. Brisbane, Australia: The University of Queensland. doi: 10.14264/0fd4e88
2023
Journal Article
Quantifying the accessibility of sustainable seafood in south-eastern Queensland, Australia
Vella, Tia, Roberson, Leslie, Kuempel, Caitie and Klein, Carissa (2023). Quantifying the accessibility of sustainable seafood in south-eastern Queensland, Australia. Marine and Freshwater Research, 74 (15), 1340-1354. doi: 10.1071/mf23054
2022
Journal Article
Multinational coordination required for conservation of over 90% of marine species (vol 27, pg 6206, 2021)
Roberson, L. A., Beyer, H. L., O'Hara, C., Watson, J. E. M., Dunn, D. C., Halpern, B. S., Klein, C. J., Frazier, M. R., Kuempel, C. D., Williams, B., Grantham, H. S., Montgomery, J. C., Kark, S. and Runting, R. K. (2022). Multinational coordination required for conservation of over 90% of marine species (vol 27, pg 6206, 2021). Global Change Biology, 28 (22), 6834-6834. doi: 10.1111/gcb.16401
2022
Other Outputs
Submission on burning native forest timber (biomass burning) for energy production
Roberson, Leslie, Reside, April and Rutherford, Caitlin (2022). Submission on burning native forest timber (biomass burning) for energy production. Canberra, ACT, Australia: Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water .
2022
Journal Article
Spatially explicit risk assessment of marine megafauna vulnerability to Indian Ocean tuna fisheries
Roberson, Leslie, Wilcox, Chris, Boussarie, Germain, Dugan, Emma, Garilao, Cristina, Gonzalez, Kristofer, Green, Madeline, Kark, Salit, Kaschner, Kristin, Klein, Carissa J., Rousseau, Yannick, Vallentyne, Dan, Watson, James E. M. and Kiszka, Jeremy J. (2022). Spatially explicit risk assessment of marine megafauna vulnerability to Indian Ocean tuna fisheries. Fish and Fisheries, 23 (5), 1180-1201. doi: 10.1111/faf.12676
2022
Journal Article
Multinational coordination required for conservation of over 90% of marine species
Roberson, Leslie A., Beyer, Hawthorne L., O’Hara, Casey, Watson, James E. M., Dunn, Daniel C., Halpern, Benjamin S., Klein, Carissa J., Frazier, Melanie R., Kuempel, Caitlin D., Williams, Brooke, Grantham, Hedley S., Montgomery, Jamie C., Kark, Salit and Runting, Rebecca K. (2022). Multinational coordination required for conservation of over 90% of marine species. Global Change Biology, 27 (23), 6206-6216. doi: 10.1111/gcb.15844
2022
Journal Article
The global rarity of intact coastal regions
Williams, Brooke A., Watson, James E. M., Beyer, Hawthorne L., Klein, Carissa J., Montgomery, Jamie, Runting, Rebecca K., Roberson, Leslie A., Halpern, Benjamin S, Grantham, Hedley S., Kuempel, Caitlin D., Frazier, Melanie, Venter, Oscar and Wenger, Amelia (2022). The global rarity of intact coastal regions. Conservation Biology, 36 (4) e13874, 1-12. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13874
2022
Other Outputs
Dolphins, turtles and birds don’t have to die in fishing gear – skilled fishers can avoid it
Roberson, Leslie and Wilcox, Chris (2022, 04 05). Dolphins, turtles and birds don’t have to die in fishing gear – skilled fishers can avoid it The Conversation
2022
Journal Article
Bycatch rates in fisheries largely driven by variation in individual vessel behaviour
Roberson, Leslie A. and Wilcox, Chris (2022). Bycatch rates in fisheries largely driven by variation in individual vessel behaviour. Nature Sustainability, 8 (8), 1-9. doi: 10.1038/s41893-022-00865-0
2021
Other Outputs
Nature doesn’t recognise borders but countries can collaborate to save species. The Escazú Agreement shows how
Roberson, Leslie, Lopez-Cubillos, Sofia and Runting, Rebecca K. (2021, 10 19). Nature doesn’t recognise borders but countries can collaborate to save species. The Escazú Agreement shows how The Conversation
2021
Journal Article
The landmark Escazú Agreement: an opportunity to integrate democracy, human rights, and transboundary conservation
López‐Cubillos, Sofía, Muñoz‐Ávila, Lina, Roberson, Leslie A., Suárez‐Castro, Andrés F., Ochoa‐Quintero, Jose Manuel, Crouzeilles, Renato, Gallo‐Cajiao, Eduardo, Rhodes, Jonathan, Dressler, Wolfram, Martinez‐Harms, María José and Runting, Rebecca K. (2021). The landmark Escazú Agreement: an opportunity to integrate democracy, human rights, and transboundary conservation. Conservation Letters, 15 (1) e12838. doi: 10.1111/conl.12838
2021
Other Outputs
Reducing fishing impacts on species of conservation concern at multiple scales
Roberson, Leslie Amlwch (2021). Reducing fishing impacts on species of conservation concern at multiple scales. PhD Thesis, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland. doi: 10.14264/b57face
2021
Other Outputs
Submission to Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
Roberson, Leslie, Tibbetts, Ian and Davey, Madeline (2021). Submission to Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Canberra, ACT, Australia: Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.
2020
Other Outputs
What are you really eating? How threatened ‘seafood’ species slip through the law and onto your plate
Roberson, Leslie and Klein, Carissa (2020, 10 07). What are you really eating? How threatened ‘seafood’ species slip through the law and onto your plate The Conversation
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Leslie Roberson is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Media
Enquiries
Contact Dr Leslie Roberson directly for media enquiries about:
- Australian fisheries
- Bycatch
- Flake
- Sustainable seafood
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