Loni Matthew is a budding marine biologist from the San Francisco Bay Area. Her curiosity for science was fostered by various STEM programs from a very young age. This interest was reinforced through continued involvement in science. After taking a high school marine biology class, she became fascinated with marine ecotoxicology. This fascination is reflected in the niche she works in today.

Loni is currently conducting research on how E.coli (Escherichia coli) bacteria adheres to microplastic particles in aquatic environments. In the past, her research focused on microplastic ingestion of Pacific mole crabs (Emerita analoga). Her project observed how their physiology is affected by microplastic ingestion. As the research on microplastics in aquatic ecosystems continue to broaden, the data collected from her work is highly relevant and impactful.

Loni has been selected to give talks about her work at scientific conferences, both domestically and abroad. She was selected for a fellowship in Mozambique in Summer of 2022, where she did data collection on 3 separate studies.

In addition to marine biology, she is also an avid writer and has published her first book, Through the Fire: Embracing Setbacks in 2020. As a student of life, she is constantly learning from both students and successors alike.