Dr. Leonie Fian, MSc. BSc.

From 2022 to 2025, Leonie was a PhD candidate in the Environmental Psychology Research Group. As part of the research platform PLENTY – Plastics in the Environment and Society, Leonie was investigating risk perception of microplastics in food and drink and support for policies aiming to reduce plastics. She took a multi-method approach combining qualitative, quantitative and experimental research. The project's objective was to advance our understanding of people’s perceptions of microplastics in food and drink, how this relates to plastic-policy support and how to effectively communicate about remaining scientific uncertainties in this context.

In previous collaborations with the BOKU Vienna (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences) and as part of the BlueHealth Austria project, Leonie has worked with representative Austrian data to study inequalities in access to and use of blue and green spaces in Austria, and the health-promoting potential of nature contact. Beyond these, Leonie’s research interests further extend to perceptions of activists and protest movements.

Leonie was member of the board of the association NEPU (Netzwerk Psychologie und Umwelt), and the ECR Ambassadors at the Faculty of Psychology at the University of Vienna, where her responsibilities include the evaluation and promotion of mental health and well-being among early career researchers.

In May 2025, Leonie started her new role as a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer at the ‘Sustainability, Climate Change & Human Behaviour’ research group at the Department of Environmental System Sciences at the University of Graz. The interdisciplinary research group is focused on decarbonisation and climate change adaption in agricultural and food systems, public attitudes towards sustainability goals and public behaviour in dealing with socio-economic and environmental changes.

Leonie can be reached at her new e-mail address: leonie.fian@uni-graz.at