world regarding the climate crisis. He was a member of the Newsweek Global Environmental Leadership Advisory Board and was recognized by the Human Rights Campaign as one of the top ten straight advocates in the United States for LGBT equality. He has received numerous awards for his work, including the EPA Climate Protection Award, the Sierra Club Distinguished Service Award, the Respect the Earth Planet Defender Award, the Terra Firma Environmental Leadership Award, the National Association of Hispanic Publications Presidential Award, The Drug Policy Alliance Richard J. Dennis Drugpeace Award, the Progressive Democrats of America Spine Award, the League of United Latin American Citizens Profile in Courage Award, the Bill of Rights Defense Committee Patriot Award, the Code Pink (Salt Lake City) Pink Star honor, the Morehouse College Gandhi, King, Ikeda Award, the Human Rights Campaign Equality Award, the Freedom to Marry Voice for Equality Award, the LGBTQ+ Community Center of Utah Champion’s Award, the Utah Pride Political Action Award, and the World Leadership Award (London) for environmental programs. Formerly a member of the Democratic Party who won several Best Utah Democrat Awards and several Best Utah Elected Official Awards, Anderson expressed his disappointment with that party in 2011, Early life and education Ross C. "Rocky" Anderson was born in Logan, Utah, one of three children of Roy and Grace Anderson. His parents both worked at Anderson Lumber Company, a local lumber yard founded by Rocky's great-grandfather, a Norwegian immigrant carpenter who had converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Though Anderson does not currently consider himself to be a Mormon, he was raised as one and was a practicing member of the LDS Church in Logan. He has described his disagreement with certain doctrines of the LDS Church, particularly the denial of the priesthood to men of black African descent and the denial to Black men and women of the right to engage in religious temple ceremonies (see Black people and Mormonism) prior to 1978. Anderson has likewise expressed his disagreement with the LDS Church’s teachings and policies relating to members of the LGBTQ+ community. Anderson also expresses disagreement with what he describes as the LDS teaching of personal moral abdication through obedience to people in positions of authority. Anderson believes in the principle of personal conscience and individual moral development and accountability, and considers any call for blind obedience as being incompatible with