37 Chief of Natural Resources and Environment Oakland County Parks and Recreation Passionate about conservation and climate resilience, Sarah Cook-Maylen works to provide beautiful spaces for people to recreate and recharge and preserve the legacy of Oakland County as a place where people want to live and work. As the chief of Natural Resources and Environment for Oakland County Parks and Recreation, Cook-Maylen is a dedicated environmental professional who has managed large scale projects, and multimillion-dollar grants programs across the Great Lakes Region. She oversaw the development of a county-wide native plant giveaway, which provided more than 15,000 plants to Oakland County residents in 2024. Cook-Maylen also developed a local habitat improvement grant program, which helped local communities receive funding to improve native landscapes and promote native wildlife. Cook-Maylen also was a senior habitat restoration specialist for the Great Lakes Commission and a Natural Areas and Preserves Manager at the Leelanau Conservancy. A resident of Milford, Cook-Maylen received a bachelorÕs degree from the University of Michigan.