Rafaela Schinegger

Rafaela Schinegger serves as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife at Michigan State University and as a senior scientist and lecturer at the Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU). She coordinates international research projects on fish ecology, sustainable hydropower, and ecosystem services across the Alps and Europe, with emphasis on translating scientific findings for water management stakeholders.

Her research investigates fish population responses to multiple human pressures (e.g., pollution, hydropower) in freshwater systems across geographical scales. She develops assessment methodologies to link ecological status to anthropogenic stressors and quantify necessary pressure reductions for achieving good ecological status under the European Water Framework Directive. Her work integrates large-scale statistical analyses, GIS modeling, and data mining to support evidence-based river basin management.

Scientific recognition includes:

• Fulbright scholar (2015)

Dr. Schinegger actively leads multinational research coordination and project management, focusing on science-policy interfaces. She maintains strong affiliations with Michigan State University's Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability and previously collaborated with Dr. Dana Infante’s Aquatic Landscape Ecology Lab on transatlantic comparisons of riverine fish assemblages.