Dr. Leandra H. Hernandez (she/her/ella) is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Utah and a co-organizer for the Salt Lake Area Queer Climbers organization.  Her research and community activism utilizes intersectional lenses to explore media representation of QTBIPIC climbers and create more equitable recreational spaces for QTBIPOC climbers. Her research on rock climbing has been published in Leisure Studies and Frontiers in Communication. She is the recipient of the NCA 2023 Activism & Social Justice Community Engagement Award, the NCA 2023 LGBTQ+ Caucus Lambda Award, and the 2023 Access Fund DEI & Stewardship Award.