Thomas Sherry, Ph.D., was a Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Tulane University. Extensively supported by the National Science Foundation, he studied the ecology, evolution, and increasingly the conservation of tropical forest birds and their ecosystems, as well as migratory birds, particularly in the Caribbean region. He worked with many environmental community partners through his Conservation Biology course since the inception of service learning at Tulane.
He participated in diverse environmental initiatives at Tulane, including the Tulane-Xavier Center for BioEnvironmental Research, the Stone Center for Latin American Studies, the Payson Center for International Development, Tulane Law School courses and Environmental Summits, A Studio in the Woods, and multiple study-abroad programs. Sherry researched and communicated the imperative of protecting biological diversity to sustain our own species, particularly in relation to the complex threats and opportunities associated with habitat degradation and climate change. He developed a new multidisciplinary, solutions-based course on climate change that involved service and engaged learning, as well as design thinking.
Sherry held the Siegel Professorship in Social Entrepreneurship from 2016–2021.