Sarah Michael Email & Phone Number

Public policy expert Sarah Michael has spent 40 years in leadership roles in Idaho and California in state and local governments and in the private and non-profit sectors. A full time Idaho resident since 1993, Ms. Michael is an acknowledged community leader elected to three terms as a Blaine County, Idaho, County Commissioner (2001-2008). Under her leadership, Blaine County enacted stronger land use protections for water quality, wildlife, and agricultural lands, and zoning ordinance to incentivize development of affordable housing. Sarah spearheaded the creation of the county’s first regional public transportation system, Mountain Rides, which now has the second highest transit ridership in the state of Idaho. She currently serves as the Interim Executive Director of the Blaine County Housing Authority and is a North Blaine County Fire District Commissioner working to complete eight new first responder housing units in 2023. In California, Ms. Michael was senior legislative staff to the California State Legislature and then led renewable energy, energy R&D, programs at the California Energy Commission, California’s state energy planning agency. She joined the private sector as a lobbyist representing multi-national corporations including IBM, Bechtel, and Luz International, the world’s largest solar energy developer. From 2009-2012, Sarah returned to the California Energy Commission to serve as Special Advisor to the Vice Chairman responsible for overseeing California’s multi-million-dollar energy R&D efforts and California’s $100 million alternative transportation fuels and vehicle technology program.Sarah has been active on environmental issues and founded Winter Wildlands Alliance, a national organization representing Nordic and backcountry skiers who enjoy quiet winter sports. She served as the 2020-2022 community Chair of the Wood River Wolf Project (www.woodriverwolfproject.org) which, since 2007, has worked with 5 sheep producers to use nonlethal deterrents to keep wolves away from sheep grazing on public lands in Blaine County. In 2021, Sarah organized the Advocates for the Sawtooth National Recreation Area to advocate stronger land use protections and to oppose a conditional use permit for a private airstrip located in the heart of the Sawtooth Valley on land with a scenic easement on it . Sarah is the former President of the International Women’s Forum of Idaho and in 2015, one of Idaho's Women of the Year.

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  Pitzer College

  Bachelor Of Applied Science - Basc