About: Our vision: Landforce is committed to building a just world, where everyone belongs, lives in a healthy environment, and surpasses their greatest dreams.
Our teams: Professionally skilled crews who help restore and maintain land and green assets and can assist in a wide array of environmental management.
Mission: We nourish a culture of self-empowerment for people aspiring towards meaningful and stable employment, as we protect and improve the environment.
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Heather Sage
Chief Strategy Officer
Heather Sage brings nearly 30 years of experience in environmental conservation, social justice, and nonprofit leadership. Her history with Landforce goes back to its very beginnings, when she helped shape the transition of the Emerald Trail Corps team and supported the vision that launched the organization. Since then, she’s played a key role in guiding strategic planning, strengthening partnerships, and securing funding that fuels our growth.
Beyond Landforce, Heather leads her consulting practice, Periscope LLC, and has held leadership roles at the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy and PennFuture. She’s also been an active voice in regional and national collaborations focused on parks, conservation, and green infrastructure. Heather holds a Master of Environmental Science and a B.A. in Zoology from Miami University.
Thomas Guentner
Director of Land Stewardship
Thomas Guentner brings over a decade of leadership experience and equal experience as a trail builder to the Landforce management team. He received a BS from Slippery Rock University for studies focused on Public Relations and Sociology. He has worked as a court-appointed advocate for Children and Youth Services and as a direct care worker specializing in independent and transitional living for teens aging out of the system before beginning a tenure with the Student Conservation Association as a Crew Leader and environmental educator.
Thomas honed his project management and leadership skills as the manager of the Emerald Trail Corps workforce development program for the Mount Washington Community Development Corporation, where he assisted in developing Emerald View Park, Pittsburgh’s newest regional park. Thomas has completed training workshops in trail building and design through the Professional Trailbuilders Association and sustainable land care through the Phipps Conservatory. He is also certified in Soren Eriksson’s Game of Logging, the National Green Infrastructure Certification Program, and as a Pesticide/ Herbicide Applicator. Thomas has represented Landforce at numerous conferences, including the City Parks Alliance Greater and Greener Conference, PA Greenway and Trails Summit, Pennsylvania Parks and Recreation Society, American Society of Civil Engineers Sustainability Conference on Green Cities, and Institute for Sustainable Communities’ Peer Learning Workshop. His presentations have included workforce development in urban spaces, stormwater management through green infrastructure, trail and greenspace development, and building collaborative workforce programming. Thomas also sat on the Technical Advisory Committee for Pennsylvania’s State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan for 2020-2024.
Thomas is an avid ice hockey player, hiker, cyclist, kayaker, and backpacker. He can usually be found somewhere in the woods taking nature photos with his partner Kira or relaxing with a good book and some coffee on his back porch.