Latina magazine celebrates its 15th anniversary with a special collector’s issue, “15 Latinas We Love,” which highlights fifteen of the most influential Latina celebrities from throughout the magazine’s 15-year history on its extraordinary October 2011 cover. (Click on the cover above to view it in full size and colour).

Be sure to check out the 15 Latinas We Love! to hear what all of our beauties had to say about being on the cover and what it means to them to be Latina.

WHY WE LOVE HER:

Playing a racially ambiguous superhuman in James Cameron’s Dark Angel turned Alba into a 21st century action hero capable of blurring race, gender and class lines while burning up the small screen.

No habla español? No problem! Though she wasn’t raised speaking Spanish at home in California (Alba’s grandparents José and Isabel deliberately chose not to raise Spanish-speaking children in 1960s America for fear of being marginalized), Jessica is learning the language and instilling cultural pride in her three-year-old daughter Honor and newborn baby, Haven.

Family is numero uno for this supermom, who makes the switch from diaper duty to the red carpet appear effortless. No wonder she inspired Robert Rodriguez’ latest film, Spy Kids 4: All The Time In The World!

This eco-chica also runs a green household—the synthetic grass in her Los Angeles home is made of recycled materials, for one—and is committed to making the earth a cleaner place through her upcoming collection of sustainable baby and lifestyle products, called The Honest Company, scheduled to launch soon.

ON LATINAS IN HOLLYWOOD: “There [are] a lot of really strong, really cool, completely dynamic women that are Latina that young women can look up to. I love that because I certainly didn’t have those role models when I was growing up and it’s nice that I’m part of this generation. So I feel very honored and blessed to be in such good company for sure.”