Gennadi Lessin is a marine systems modeller with >15 years of experience developing and applying advanced modelling tools to improve our understanding of biogeochemical and ecological dynamics of marine systems and their response to natural and anthropogenic disturbance at scales from shelf seas to the global ocean, and to provide scientific support to marine management and policy.
His research interests span a wide range of topics, including the biogeochemistry of the benthic zone and benthic-pelagic interactions, dynamics of greenhouse gases, in particular methane and nitrous oxide, and understanding the complexity of marine nitrogen cycle, by integrating numerical modelling with observational data and machine learning approaches.
Gennadi holds a PhD in engineering physics from Tallinn University of Technology, where he worked before joining PML, as well as BSc and MSc in geoecology from Tallinn University. He is also trained as a teacher of natural sciences, and is passionate about Ocean Literacy, leading the PML involvement in the development of Ocean Conservation Curriculum.
He is currently a Co-I and institutional PI in several national and international projects as well as one of the lead developers of modular biogeochemical-ecosystem model ERSEM.