2006 REAL hot 100They're entrepreneurs from L.A., artists from Chicago, community organizers from North Carolina, bloggers from Texas and educators from Brooklyn. What do these young women have in common? They're all remarkable role models who are breaking barriers, fighting stereotypes and making a difference in the world. They're smart. They work for change. And they're definitely not afraid to speak their minds. 

They are the REAL hot 100 of 2006, and they prove that young women have way more to offer than their ability to look good in a bikini. Chosen from more than 350 nominees(representing over 35 states), these women illustrate what it means to be truly "hot" in a world that too often applies that term to women's bodies only.

Meet the REAL hot 100 women of 2006 & see how hot SMART can be:

Who is she? Tara Acton, 26, Norwell, MA

What makes her REALLY hot? Tara is making a difference in the lives of many people in the U.S. and internationally. A first generation American, Tara’s goal is to be a positive, strong, and feminine role model for young girls. With this in mind, over the last few years she has been an after school mentor for 5th graders, a Girls Scout Leader, and a Big Sister and, in addition, focused her undergraduate and graduate education on issues that affect women and young girls on a national and international basis. Since May 2005, Tara has been working with the Peace Corps El Salvador, in a site with a group of rural women who are fighting for their equality despite the machismo in their culture. Tara assists these women in the beginning stages of forming a legalized group who will be able to work towards bettering the quality life for women in their community. Tara says: “these women are amazing and… I think they should be nominated for the REAL hot too!”

Who is she? Yas(min) Ahmed, 25, Chicago, IL

What makes her REALLY hot? Yas is the Director of Sisters Empowering Sisters (the girls program of Girl’s Best Friend Foundation). Yas defines her role in Sisters Empowering Sisters (SES) as adult ally to the dozen Sisters (ages 14-18) who’ve joined the program to make feminist social change, as grant makers and as youth leaders. One of the projects she helped create was an investigation of the impact of images of women in popular music videos on young women and young men. Their findings are captured in a video they made last year with Beyondmedia Education. The engaging video, Respect Me, Don’t Media Me (www.beyondmedia.org/catalog) has been shown to enthusiastic crowds in Chicago and at media festivals. In the spring, three Sisters and Yas wrote a chapter together about SES for an anthology about gender and philanthropy that will be published by Palgrave/McMillan in 2006. Always ready to cause a ruckus, this REALLY hot woman considers herself a radical queer girl whose love of writing and politics parallels only that of pizza. Her current projects are learning to carry a spoon on her nose...and undermining the oppressive systems that divide us.

Who is she? Estefania Alves, 20, Boston, MA

What makes her REALLY hot? When Estefania was a High School senior, she saw a need in her community for a radio station that would only broadcast music that respects and empowers women. Soon after, in a converted storage closet of a women’s center in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood, GRLZ Radio hit the airwaves. Her station’s mission to educate, empower and promote leadership has affected her community via educational programming that includes discussions on topics like HIV/AIDS and teen pregnancy, and putting positive role models on the air, like Kathleen O’Toole, the first female Boston Police Commissioner. Currently an undergrad at Boston College, Estefania plans to get her Masters in Social Work, and is considering law school. They would be lucky to have her!

Who is she? Lauri Apple, 29, New York, NY

What makes her REALLY hot? Lauri, who has endured poverty, homelessness, sexual abuse and domestic violence, is the first in her family to go to college. She has always held jobs that enable her to affect the community in a positive way -- as an activist for fair trade/elections economic policies, a news/politics reporter for alt-weeklies, a communications staffer and project director for the ACLU, Texas Bicycle Coalition, and other non-profits, and a volunteer for various economic rights groups. As Director of the ACLU's Banned Books Project (2004), she compiled and published a report on books banned in Texas public schools, ran a media campaign that attracted international press to the project, and organized an anti-censorship exhibit featuring 60 artists (all while studying for, taking, and then scoring in the top 3% on the LSAT!). These days Lauri’s one of the few working-class students at a prestigious (and expensive!) law school in NYC.