Grupo Omnilife Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology Legend Holdings Remy Cointreau

Jorge Vergara, Founder, Grupo Omnilife
A decade ago, he was peddling pork on the streets of Guadalajara. Today his Mexican nutritional-supplement business, Grupo Omnilife, boasts yearly sales of $600 million and distributors in 10 countries. Last month Vergara, 45, ended his attempt to buy the Body Shop beauty chain. That leaves him more cash for his pet project under construction in Guadalajara, a $440 million complex with 10 world- recognized architects on staff.

Dominique Hériard Dubreuil, Chairman, Rémy Cointreau
When she took control of her family's 275-year-old French distiller in 1998, the venerable cognac brand, its sales flagging, looked ready to go under. A public relations executive, Hériard Dubreuil, 54, quickly sold off marginal assets such as a Bordeaux wine-trading company and pumped up marketing for the cognac. Now she has earned a toast of her own. In June she announced a 71% growth in profits for the year.

Vandana Shiva, Indian ecologist
Her most recent cause, in May, was railing against McDonald's for using cow fat in French fries. Shiva, 49, calls herself an eco-feminist. At one moment she scolds multinational corporations in street protests, and the next she advises their CEOs on how to be good global citizens. Born in a Himalayan village and trained as a physicist, Shiva has taken up issues like logging and pesticide use through her New Delhi­based Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology.

Jonathan H. Cohen, Money manager, JHC Capital Partners
Best known for telling investors in 1999 that Amazon.com stock was worth $50 three weeks before it hit $400, Cohen has been vindicated by the current bear market for tech stocks. As the top tech analyst at Merrill Lynch, he was one of the few who preached moderation in the late '90s, and eventually left, to be replaced by superbull Henry Blodget. Today Cohen, 36, is moving on to money managing at a technology hedge fund, JHC Capital Partners.

Liu Chuanzhi, Chairman, Legend Holdings
In 1984 he was asked by his boss at the Chinese Academy of Sciences to go xia hai—literally, "jump into the sea"— abandon research and launch a computer company. Last month that company, Legend Holdings, partnered with AOL Time Warner (parent of TIME) to expand Internet service in China. With Legend granted a 51% stake in the venture, Liu, 56, appears poised to lead the opening of a massive Net market.

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