15 Celebs Who Use Their Fame For Good

Fame is a pretty complicated thing. On one level, it is all about ego, money, and attention, and on another, it's about touching other people and spreading awareness and hope. Plenty of celebrities spread the sort of hope that makes other people believe that they too should follow their dreams, but some celebs take that a step further and get involved in some situations that have actionable steps and results addressing real life issues that need more support. Some celebrities are aware that their celebrity carries a certain amount of responsibility and others are just glad to be able to have a voice in the world and do work on other topics that they are passionate about outside of the entertainment industry. Here are some celebrities who are using their fame for the greater good. You can see their passion in the projects by how unique their charitable tastes are.

15 Russell Brand

Russell Brand is a big thinker and questioner about the ways of the world and he spends a lot of time putting his voice out there so that other people will do the same. He is also known for spending a lot of time with homeless people in Los Angeles, helping them out but also listening to their stories. Russell opened a cafe called Trew Era and then donated it to a charity called RAPt that supports former prisoners and people who are struggling with addiction. The cafe is a recovery enterprise, meaning that it is staffed by recovering addicts who are a part of the program. Russell is a recovering addict himself. He has said, “The most important thing in my life is where I interface with the things that keep me clean and sober and interconnected. I hope I do a variety of work going forward, but this is not something I can really control. I don't make plans anymore.”

14 Mariska Hargitay

Mariska Hargitay has enjoyed a long career on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, but the show was also the inspiration behind her non-profit Joyful Heart Foundation. Mariska was prompted to start it by the fan mail that she has received over the years. “The letters did not say, 'I love your show. Can you send me an autographed picture?' They said, 'I was a victim like the ones on your shows when I was fifteen. I'm forty now and I have never told anyone.' Survivors were disclosing their stories to her, many for the first time.” The non-profit was launched in 2004 and has locations in New York, Los Angeles, and Honolulu. It has directly served 15,000 people and has a reach of 2.4 million people online. The goal of the foundation is to “heal, educate and empower survivors of assault, domestic violence, and child abuse.” Now this is truly amazing.

13 Adrian Grenier

Adrian Grenier made it big with Entourage and he has leveraged his fame into several discussions about living an eco-friendly life. Adrian regularly speaks at conferences on the matter, and he also co-founded the SHFT.com multimedia project, which brings awareness to issues such as food justice and the increased usage of electrical vehicles. He also co-founded the Lonely Whale Foundation to bring awareness to how we are affecting the oceans. This cause helps to bring this home in relatable ways instead of leaving it as a far off concept. For example, most common mattresses are made with flame retardants to keep us safe, but those chemicals also accumulate in the bodies of sea animals. Adrian even rides Uber pool when it is available to cut down on his time on the road. If he can handle riding with a bunch of strangers than anyone can. He is truly an inspiration and we can all learn from him.

12 Eva Longoria

The Desperate Housewives star is extremely passionate about giving minorities the voice and exposure that they deserve in the entertainment industry. Which we think she is perfect for since she can represent the people correctly. She started a production company called Unbelievable Entertainment that does just that and has produced shows like Devious Maids. She also started the Eva Longoria Foundation which aims to encourage young latinas through scholarships and career support. She co-founded the non-profit Eva's Heroes with the intention of helping people with developmental issues, and she is the national spokesperson for PADRES Contra El Cancer (Parents Against Cancer). She also regularly gets involved in other people's charities and was selected by President Obama to be a commissioner to the National Museum of the American Latino Commission, which documents 500 years of Latino contributions to the United States. Wow talk about someone who does it all, we love that!

11 John Legend

John Legend is the head of the Show Me Campaign and LRNG, which aims to provide a quality education for every kid in America. He also works to address issues with the criminal justice system that keep certain people impoverished, which he does by working with Teach for America, Teach for All, Harlem Village Academies, and New Profit. John uses his social media to promote these causes and keep his fans involved. Part of his intentions in changing the situation with schools is providing the teachers with the resources that they need to make changes. He credits a single teacher for giving him the inspiration to honor his creative urges and go after a singing career, and we all know how that turned out. He has said, "I grew up in a family that did not have a lot of money, but I knew education was the path to success."

10 Lena Dunham

Lena Dunham is a huge supporter of social justice of programs and feminism and frequently speaks out in support of relevant organizations, like Planned Parenthood in particular. She is not shy about using her voice, even to the point that it occasionally gets her in some hot water. We love someone who can truly stand up for what they believe in without worrying about the consequences, it really shows how committed and how much she cares. Lena has also released a book with the intention of raising money for charity. Is It Evil Not to Be Sure? includes notes from her diaries throughout her life. The proceeds from the book went to a charity called Girls Write Now, which pairs up young aspiring writer with professional mentors in New York City. Lena spoke with passion about her interests in doing that project. She has said, "I can't think of a more admirable goal for an organization or a better reason to expose the oft-troubling thought patterns of my final teenage year."

9 Zach Galifianakis

Sometimes celebrities do so much good, they direct their efforts at individual people. When Zach was just a struggling comedian on the rise, he did his laundry at a laundromat where he befriended an older woman named Elizabeth Mimi Heist who worked as a volunteer and lived off her tips from customers. He continued to stay in touch with her after he became famous, and when he found out that she had become homeless, he got her a one-bedroom apartment in Santa Monica. He pays her rent and utilities. Zach's friend Renee Zellweger helped decorate the apartment for the woman, and they check in on a regular basis to make sure that she has plenty of groceries. Zach has also taken Mimi as his date to multiple Hangover premieres, as well as the premiere for The Campaign. Super sweet, right? Just reading this gives you all the feels, we can't get over it.

8 Elton John

In 1992, Elton John created the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) to help fight the fight against AIDS and HIV. The musician has said “I have lost many dear friends to this terrible disease. In the mid-1980s, I began channeling my grief into efforts to help raise money for the pioneering charitable organizations that formed during those dark, grim years to fund AIDS research and provide vital services to people with HIV/AIDS.” That money raised is currently over $125 million, and it is being used for education about the virus and service programs around the world with an intention to stop the spread. Elton is also a pretty charitable person in general. He currently holds the title for the most money given to non-profits by an individual in a year. Wow can you imagine winning that title? In 1994 he donated $43 million of his own money to a variety of different nonprofits.

7 Emma Watson

Emma Watson launched a program called HeForShe in an effort to educate and incite interest from all genders in gender equality. HeForShe is a part of the United Nations new Women's program. Not surprisingly the actress is also a goodwill ambassador for U.N. Women, and she also speaks out on social media about gender equality all the time. Emma has also been highly involved in charity work over the years. She's a frequent supporter of UNICEF and asks people to donate on her behalf as well. She has also been the creative designer for an eco-friendly line called PeopleTree, which had factories built in Dhaka, Bangladesh with the specific intention being that it would create lots of jobs for the impoverished people who live there. Emma has also created paintings for the African charity CAMFED and donates her own belongs for auctions at charities such as Wild Trout Trust, Sense, DIFFA/Dallas, and Blue Peter's Mission Nutrition.

6 Angelina Jolie

It is no surprise that she would make our list. Angelina Jolie works with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and has visited over 50 countries as a goodwill ambassador. She is a co-chair for the Educational Partnership for Children in Conflict, which provides a safe place to go to school for children that have to flee from violence. Angelina also adopts children who need a home, but she remains connected to where they came from. When she adopted Maddox from Cambodia she created the Maddox Jolie-Pitt Foundation to help end poverty, protect the forests, and create more educational and health care opportunities. When she adopted her daughter Zahara from Ethiopia she announced her plans to open an AIDS and Tuberculosis clinic in the country. In 2010 she opened a school in Tangi, Afghanistan that specifically serves young women who were missing the opportunity. Talk about a true inspiration.

5 Miley Cyrus

She might be wild, she might do questionable things, but what think is for sure and that is how much she likes to help people! Miley Cyrus is known for her unique ways, and being in the position that she's in, she has been able to better lives in a big way. Miley founded the Happy Hippy Foundation in an effort to support homeless youth and LGBTQ youth. According to the website, 40 percent of homeless youth are LGBT, and Miley has worked to give them a voice. The foundation offers treatment programs that involve art therapy and animal therapies. "Happy Hippie is designed as a corrective to what Cyrus understands as immoral politicking, the sort that pits outliers as pariahs and favors an archaic status quo." She also donates to other charities regularly like giving half a million dollars to an AIDS research gala and throwing herself a birthday party with the intention to raise money for a dog rescue organization. Awesome.

4 John Cena

Pro wrestler John Cena spends a good amount of his time with children who are battling serious illnesses. He frequently takes part in the Make a Wish Foundation and has made the dreams of over 500 children come true that requested him to be a part of it. In 2011 he shared that he had donated nine million frequent flier miles to the organization, and in 2013 he donated 4.5 million. He's the largest donor to that part of the organization's campaign, which allows tons of kids to live out their wishes. He was also the first person to grant 300 wishes for the foundation. Most of the gear that he wears in the ring is worn to raise awareness about foundations like the Susan G. Komen foundation for breast cancer awareness, as well as the U.S. troops, and he has wrestled for the troops ten times as well in Iraq and Afghanistan.

3 Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato has done a lot of work to bring awareness to mental health issues in an effort to reduce the stigmatization around them. Demi has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and treated for addiction issues in rehab. She has been open about her experiences and wanting to support others in similar situations. One way that she's done this is starting a treatment scholarship program in honor of her father who also suffered from mental illness, as well as taking part in a joint campaign called Be Vocal: Speak Up for Mental Health that five different companies take part in. She has said about this, "The accolades that matter most to me are the ones that recognize the work I've done charity-wise. That's really what matters most. No number one single can ever top that. It's the thing that keeps me strong, makes me feel that when I want to give up, I know I have this going for me."

2 Laverne Cox

Laverne Cox found fame with her role on Orange is the New Black, and with that fame, she has remained dedicated to being an advocate for the transgender community. Laverne has had some firsts as a transgender actress, including being the first trans person of either gender to be nominated for an Emmy, the first trans woman to appear on the cover of Time magazine, and the first trans person to produce and star in her own reality TV show with VH1's TRANSForm Me. When the show Doubt airs on CBS her character will be the first ever series regular trans actor on broadcast TV that is played by a real-life trans person. Laverne has also produced a few different documentaries on the trans topic and speaks frequently about LGBT issues. Laverne has used her sudden rise to fame to bring a lot of attention to the trans community.

1 Leonardo DiCaprio

Not only is he an amazing actor, but he also stands up for such amazing causes. Leonardo DiCaprio is extremely passionate about the environment and has demonstrated this in a variety of ways from making documentaries on the topic, speaking with politicians, creating his own eco-friendly resorts, and using his stage time at award shows to talk global warming. Which is honestly an amazing thing for him to be doing! Leo is not shy about his cause, and as one of the most famous movie stars out there, we hear him. Leo created the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation all the way back in 1998, which aims to combat global warming and protect biodiversity, wildlife conservation, indigenous rights, marine conservation, public advocacy, and innovative solutions. His foundation has supported over 65 organizations with $59.6 million grants awarded. His documentaries on relevant topics include The 11th Hour and Before the Flood. If you haven't heard of it, you should definitely give it a watch!