In honor of Women’s History Month, here are seven women who have had a huge impact on the world in the 21st century. They have stepped forward and led us into a new time with their bravery, humor and dedication.

Michelle Obama

“There are still many causes worth sacrificing for, so much history yet to be made.”

As the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama has become an important role model for many people in the nation, especially for young girls. In February 2010, she launched her “Let’s Move!” campaign to inspire young people to live healthier, more active lives in attempt to fight childhood obesity. In September 2010, Michelle Obama announced that her campaign would team up with “NFL Play 60” to expand on the work done by both programs and continue to work towards their goals of improving the health of America’s youth. The First Lady’s program encourages our generation to engage in at least 30 minutes of physical activity, and for today’s adults to engage in at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day. The program stresses the importance of access to healthy foods in schools and communities. The health and wellness of our nation’s people is essential, and fighting for a solution to childhood obesity is necessary to meeting that goal.

Malala Yousafzai

“One child, one teacher, one pen, and one book can change the world.”

Ever since she was a little girl, education has been very important to Malala. At just 14 years old, she became a prominent advocate for girls’ education and skyrocketed to the forefront of international media. In 2011, at just 14 years old, Malala was nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize for her activism and was awarded Pakistan’s National Youth Peace Prize. When she was 15 years old, Malala was shot three times on her school bus by a Taliban member. In 2013, on her sixteenth birthday, Malala spoke at the United Nations about her experience and she advocated for universal education. Later that same year, she published her autobiography "I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Talibam." In 2014, Malala traveled to Jordan, Kenya, and Nigeria to advocate for women’s rights since these countries were fighting battles similar to her own country. Today, Malala remains an advocate for women’s rights, particularly focusing on women's rights to education. Her organization, the Malala Fund, encourages and empowers girls to reach their full potential and strive toward becoming leaders in their own countries.

Ellen DeGeneres

“I think we need more love in the world. We need more kindness, more compassion, more joy, more laughter. I definitely want to contribute to that.”

From her stand-up comedy debut in 1981 to the start of her long-running talk show in 2003, Ellen DeGeneres has become a household name for many Americans who resonate with her humor and generosity. In 1997, she came out as gay and immediately arose as a strong LGBT rights advocate. Ellen has written several books, including "Seriously...I'm Kidding," as well as "My Point...And I Do Have One," and she has lent her voice to one of America’s favorite animated characters, Dory from "Finding Nemo." But Ellen DeGeneres is so much more than a funny public figure; she is an active humanitarian in America. Ellen DeGeneres has supported over 45 charities and foundations of all kinds, including the Best Friends Animal Society, Children’s Health Fund, Feeding America, GLAAD, the It Gets Better Project, Peace First, Red Cross, Stand Up to Cancer, STOMP Out Bullying, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, UNICEF, and so many more. Ellen DeGeneres has used her fame to make the world a better place. At the conclusion of her talk show each day, Ellen always ends with an inspirational message such as, “be kind to one another”. If we had more people like Ellen, the world would be a much happier, funnier, more peaceful place to live.

J.K. Rowling

“I believe in hard work and luck, and that the first often leads to the second.”

Since coming onto the writing scene in 1997, Joanne Kathleen Rowling has stolen the hearts of many people across the globe with her "Harry Potter" book series. She has written 10 books for the series, seven of which have been made into the eight films that make up the "Harry Potter" franchise, and a few others that are currently being transformed into screenplays, including "Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them." Rowling has also written a couple of young adult novels which are not related to the Harry Potter series such as "The Casual Vacancy" and "The Cuckoo's Calling." J. K. Rowling has received several awards for her literature, including the Prince of Austria’s Award for Concord, France’s Légion d’Honneur, and the Hans Christian Anderson Literature Award. The renowned author has also contributed to and supported a large number of charitable organizations and causes, including Gingerbread, The Maggie’s Centres for Cancer Care, and Doctors Without Borders, and she is the founder of Lumos, a charity working toward changing the lives of underprivileged children. Rowling got the idea for her organization when she read a news story about children sleeping in caged beds in institutions in the Czech Republic. Because of this story, the goal of Lumos is to help children around Europe find safer, all around better places to live. In 1999 and 2008, J. K. Rowling received the Author of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Award. She has enriched the lives of many people and has instilled a love of reading in many young adults.

Alicia Garza

“Just like we don’t live in a two-dimensional world, we don’t live two-dimensional lives. Our lives are multidimensional, and because of the systems that we live under, there are particular punishments and sanctions for different aspects of who we are.”

You might not know her by name, but you definitely know her movement. Alicia Garza is responsible for coining the widely-known phrase “black lives matter” when she appealed to her fellow black citizens after George Zimmerman was acquitted in the case of Trayvon Martin’s murder. She was upset by the verdict of the trial, especially because Trayvon reminded her of her brother, who she said “could never hurt a fly”. In her note the black community on Facebook, Garza encouraged them to unite and remind America and the world “that black lives matter”. The phrase was turned into a hashtag, which quickly spread on social media and became a nation-wide movement to stop police brutality, racial inequality, and social injustice. Similar to the “Black Power” movement of the 1960s through 1980s, Black Lives Matter works toward eliminating poverty, unemployment, and racial profiling, reorganizing the public education and health care systems, and decreasing the prison population. The hashtag for Black Lives Matter has become a worldwide phenomenon, taking shape across North America, South America, Africa, Europe, and Australia. Alicia Garza has begun to propagate change for black people across the globe.

Opal Tometi

“Black Lives Matter is really an affirmation for our people. It’s a love note for our people, but it’s also a demand.”

In 2013, Opal Tometi worked with Alicia Garza and Patrisse Cullors to create Black Lives Matter, now a worldwide movement to remind the world of the equality for which black people have worked. The child of Nigerian parents, Opal Tometi advocates for the rights of immigrants and is the executive director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, an organization that advocates specifically for the rights of African and Caribbean immigrants in the United States. In 2014, Tometi was named a “New Civil Rights Leader” by Essence Magazine for her ability to create national and international movements. Opal Tometi is helping to change the world through her work in all of her organzations.

Patrisse Cullors

“Claiming and declaring that black lives matter is an important conversation and important grounding point for black people and their allies.”

Patrisse Cullors is a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. When she was 16 years old, Cullors came out as gay and moved out of her childhood home to live with other young gay women who were also facing the challenges of being black in the United States. Ever since, Cullors has been an advocate for the rights of gay and black individuals in America. She is the founder and a board member of the Dignity and Power Now organization based in Los Angeles, and she is the director for “truth and reinvestment” at the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. While she was growing up, Patrisse Cullors had many of her friends and family experience incarceration and police brutality, both of which influenced her path to advocacy. In 2014, Cullors received the Contribution to Oversight Award from the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement, and in 2015, she was named NAACP History Maker. Currently, she speaks at many colleges and universities and continues to work with the Black Lives Matter movement.

These women are changing the world. Happy Women's History Month!