Sarah Cook-Maylen has worked for Oakland County Parks for 8 years and oversees all natural resources efforts within the 7000-acre park system. She has a degree in Program in the Environment from the University of Michigan. Prior to her work at OCP Sarah worked for the Great Lakes Commission overseeing habitat restoration projects in Areas of Concern across the Great Lakes Basin. Additionally, Sarah was the Manager of Natural Areas and Preserves for the Leelanau Conservancy and oversaw management and restoration of unique interdunal and Great Lakes shoreline habitats.

TSN Conference 2026

January 22nd, 2026 (Thursday) // 3:05 pm – 4:05 pm // Room 103 // CHIPs! Funding Community Habitat Improvement Projects: Implementation, Data Streamlining, Case Studies, and Lessons Learned // Initiated in 2021, Oakland County Parks’ annual grants through the Community Habitat Improvement Projects (CHIPs) have been taking a bite out of the urgent local conservation and restoration needs one year at a time. CHIPs assists Oakland County municipalities and CISMA partners to tackle local invasive species and restoration priorities through indirect funding, coordinating contractor management, and directing staff capacity to maximize impact. This presentation will showcase the successes and pitfalls of this multi-pronged program from organizational development and coordination, GIS applications and data streamlining, impact and work completed, and implications for management innovations and recommendations from case studies. Types of projects that have been implemented through this program include: invasive species treatment, winter forestry mowing, turf-conversion projects, and native seed/plug plantings. Check out the webpage HERE for more information.