And the Oscar goes to…

Many of the 2010 Oscar-nominated men have been leading in their communities for years.

 BEST ACTOR Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart Bridges co-founded the End Hunger Network back in the 1983. It was originally founded to end world hunger; it is now primarily focused on ending childhood hunger in the U.S. by 2015. You can also catch Bridges on the recently re-recorded “We Are the World” for Haiti relief efforts.

 George Clooney, Up in the Air Clooney co-founded Not On Our Watch with his Ocean’s 11 co-stars Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, and Brad Pitt, and producer Jerry Weintraub to stop the genocide in Darfur. His charity has donated millions of dollars to help those in Darfur, with much of the funding going through the United Nations World Food Programme. The organization also made a $1 million donation to Partners In Health for Haiti relief and rebuilding efforts. Clooney recently teamed with MTV Networks to host the Hope for Haiti Now telethon, which raised more than $58 million for Haiti relief. 

Colin Firth, A Single Man Firth supports Oxfam International and its Make Trade Fair initiative. Firth also serves as an Oxfam Ambassador, auctioned off an “experience” with himself on eBay last September to raise money for the charity.

 Morgan Freeman, Invictus Freeman wrote a cookbook Morgan Freeman and Friends: Caribbean Cooking for a Cause with several celebrities like Tom Hanks and Hilary Swank contributing their own recipes. 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Matt Damon, Invictus Damon along with Cloney is a co-founder Not On Our Watch. Damon is also the co-founder of Water.org whose mission is “to draw attention to the world’s number one health problem, unsafe and inadequate water supplies, and to raise funds to help fight this immense problem one community at a time.

 Woody Harrelson, The Messenger Harrelson founded VoiceYourself to promote and inspire individual action to create global momentum towards simple organic living and to restore balance and harmony to our planet.