Michael B. Thomas, PhD is a botanist and agribusiness consultant whose specialization is bioinformatics, biodivesrity assessment and the documentation/preservation of bio-cultural knowledge. He has a background in Botany, Horticulture, and Forestry. He received a PhD from the Department of Botany at the University of Florida. His dissertation focused on the ethnopharmacoeia of the Pataxo, Indigenous group in Bahia, Brazil. His research and teaching interests include ethnobotany, ethnbiology, and biodiversity informatics.