Associate Professor Meru Sheel is an infectious diseases epidemiologist and vaccinologist, particularly interested in vaccines for epidemic control, and immunization amongst priority populations. Dr Sheel leads the Infectious Diseases, Immunisation and Emergencies (IDIE) team at the Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute and Sydney School of Public Health and the University of Sydney. Dr Sheel has been awarded ~AUD1.8million as a CI and is a co-investigator on grants worth AUD13million. Dr Sheel earned a PhD in life sciences from the Queensland Institute of Medical Research and the Queensland University of Technology working on new vaccines for bacterial pathogens - group A streptococcus. Dr Sheel’s post-doctoral training was on parasite immunology with a focus on malaria and visceral leishmaniasis before transitioning into public health. Dr Sheel also holds an MPhil in Applied Epidemiology from the Australian National University.

Dr Sheel has extensive field experience of having worked in several dynamic and complex environments in the Asia-Pacific region including India, Cambodia, Samoa, American Samoa, Fiji, Lao PDR and Cambodia. Dr Sheel has also responded to international emergencies in Fiji, Dominica, Rohingya Crisis in Cox's Bazar Bangladesh, Tonga and Papua New Guinea. Dr Sheel also Co-Chairs the IA2030 SP7 on Research and Innovation and serves on the Data Use Working Group, and is a member of the WHO’s Immunization and Vaccines Related Implementation Research Advisory Committee (IVIR-AC). In 2019, Meru was recognised as the Science and Medicine winner for 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australians, the 2020 ANU Vice Chancellors Awards for Impact and Engagement and 2023 finalist for Women’s Agenda Leadership awards for Health. Meru’s research interest including measles, COVID-19 and other vaccine-preventable but epidemic prone diseases and, operational and implementation research to drive evidence-based decision making.