Dr Margaret Merga is an Associate Professor at the University of Notre Dame Australia and Lead Consultant at Merga Consulting. She has written over a hundred peer-reviewed and research-informed publications, including six books. These include the 2023 books Creating a reading culture in primary and secondary schools: A practical guide (Facet Publishing, UK), and Creating an Australian school literacy policy (Amba Press, Australia). She is an international keynote speaker whose work has been translated into many different languages, and she is closely connected with Australian and international school library communities. Also an advocate at a local level, she is the inaugural Patron of the Australian School Library Association and the Western Australian School Library Association. She was the Chief Investigator on the 2024 International School Library Workforce Project, which gathered crucial library workforce data from respondents across more than 60 countries. She has also delivered numerous invited keynotes and been on expert panels related to her sole and co-authored research on thesis by publication (TBP) and academic communication, as well as acting as a policy advisor on TBP. She consults with schools, professional associations and government departments on a range of literacy projects.

In 2022 she was invited to co-author the International Literacy Association's position statement on The essential leadership of school librarians.