Professor among 'top 100 most influential people'

A PLYMOUTH researcher has been named among TIME's 100 most influential people of 2025. Professor Richard Thompson, OBE FRS, has been included in the prestigious list, alongside other notable figures from the worlds of politics, industry, culture, science and sport.

- By LORNA HUGHES

Professor Thompson led the first study using the term microplastics to describe the microscopic fragments of plastic polluting oceans. He heads the International Marine Litter Research Unit at the University of Plymouth.

He is among a handful of UK representatives on the overall list, with others including the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, and singer Ed Sheeran.

Professor Thompson is featured within the Innovators category alongside rapper Snoop Dogg, chef Kwame Onwuachi, ecologist Professor Sandra Diaz, and astronomer Wendy Freedman - in recognition of his ongoing research into the causes, effects and potential solutions of the global plastics crisis.