Melissa Schiele

Melissa Schiele is a Researcher at Loughborough University and holds an honorary researcher position at the University of Exeter. She previously worked at Imperial College London and the Institute of Zoology at ZSL (Zoological Society of London) since 2018. Her expertise spans marine conservation, ecology, fisheries, and UAV engineering, with a focus on developing low-cost water-landing fixed-wing UAVs for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations. These technologies are applied to marine surveillance, ecological monitoring, and combating Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing.

• Key Projects: Launched the first international conservation technology project in the Maldives (2021), focusing on IUU fishing surveillance and marine wildlife monitoring.
• Technical Expertise: Specializes in UAV engineering/operations, spatial analysis of fisheries, and plastics detection in aquatic environments.

Her research integrates multidisciplinary approaches to address environmental challenges, emphasizing innovation and practical solutions for sustainability.