Tom Furgason

om recently retired from environmental consulting, where he began doing fieldwork that involved surveying for federally-listed threatened and endangered species, including southwestern willow flycatcher (SWFL), cactus ferruginous pygmy-owl, and other federally and State-listed animals and plants. His 20-plus-year career in consulting gave him broad experience with private companies and government agencies on matters involving the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, Endangered Species Act, and Clean Water Act, among other major environmental regulations. He also oversaw a long-term monitoring project of SWFL along the Colorado River, which included nest monitoring and banding. Tom’s career culminated in regional leadership positions with strategic and business planning responsibilities and the profitability and growth of multi-million-dollar business units. In his spare time, Tom has served on the Board of Directors for the Colorado Mountain Bike Association (COMBA). In addition to standard duties of a Board Member, he worked with the Executive Director and others to foster key relationships with land management agencies. These relationships ultimately led to COMBA developing a regional plan for trails that minimized impacts to sensitive resources and brought other user groups into the process. Tom earned a B.S. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Arizona in 1997. Outside of his professional career, he has worked on a variety of field research projects, such as vegetation monitoring in Grand Canyon along the Colorado River and banding grassland sparrows in southern Arizona. Tom and his wife enjoy birding, camping, hiking, traveling, and birding.