Inside Chris Bentley’s Vision for MALA
Life-long eco-warrior and “eco-preneur” Chris Bentley is the kind of connector who seems to know everyone, and more importantly, makes sure they know each other.
He has a vision to spread peace and love not only within local communities, but also across states and the nation. While that may seem far-fetched, it’s through his good heart and healthy mindset that he believes it’s attainable.
Bentley has spent decades building and supporting sustainability-minded efforts. Through the creation of his many sustainability businesses, 13 to be exact, he’s been contributing to the environment for years on end.
It’s these qualities that have led him to proclaim himself as an “eco-preneur”. It’s self-explanatory, meaning he’s an entrepreneur well-versed within the realm of sustainability, but it suits him perfectly. From early visions that helped catalyze a Pet Sustainability Coalition to newer projects in Boulder, he’s heavily involved in the community.
Bentley recently celebrated his 70th birthday at the new Limelight Hotel where over 150 students, dozens of his mentees, city leaders, entrepreneurs, non-profit builders, CU leadership, and our US Representative attended. However, he pushed that the celebration wasn’t about him, but about the community. He reflected on his years of connecting and mentoring others, highlighting specific stories that guided his career.
Through this, he introduced MALA, his aspiring movement to spread peace and love across communities. It’s not a pitch, but rather, a community practice. The “why” is peace, the “how” is participation, and the “who” is anyone willing to show up.
A Man Built for Connecting
The creation of MALA is an astute representation of who Bentley is. He loves and cares deeply about others around him and the environment.
Bentley’s focus is constantly on the future, and he keeps that focus through merging, mentoring, and MALA. He’s about connecting people, so they can share ideas, and contribute to new peace, his celebration being a perfect example.
He considers merging to be his lever to move the world. He pushed others at the celebration to branch out and talk to those they normally won’t, including students, founding fathers, government officials, and sustainability professionals, the list goes on. The point was, there were people of all backgrounds and all professions, and Bentley was there to connect them all.
This profound ability propelled him into the world of mentorship. It began 13 years ago at the alumni center, where he was attending a talk by Erick Mueller about happiness, and was inspired by his words.
“One of the biggest things that can make you the happiest and most successful is a great mentor.”
Right then and there, one of the MBA students he had been talking to turned and asked him to be her mentor. She became the first of his now hundreds of official and adopted mentees.
Bentley preaches the mentorship programs at CU, most notably, the Professional Mentorship Program led by Sally Forester. Even at his celebration, he explained its value, providing QR codes for easy program access.
He has a knack for finding mentees, with one of his more memorable ones being at a TEDx talk, when he simply observed someone actively taking notes and paying attention. It’s people with these qualities and traits he’s looking to help push the message of MALA and guide students into sustainability careers.
What makes mentoring so special is the scaffolding around it. With personalized matches and clarified expectations, both mentors and mentees are equipped with guidance on how to work together. There are touchpoints to kick things off with an encouragement to cross-pollinate. Bentley’s not trying to run a one-man show but setting up a system to scale mentoring without losing the human touch.
The Birth of a Movement
His philosophy sets the stage for MALA, his new movement and push to spread peace and love. Standing for Make America Love Anew, Bentley frames it as a movement that begins locally and spreads through conversations with family and friends.
MALA is a movement that brings everyone together, perhaps during a divided time. It isn’t about making things ‘great again’, but making them greater now. He encourages fellow eco-warriors to take a step forward with him, not back.
But the term “eco-warrior” isn’t limited. To him, it’s anybody with a pulse who fosters peace and environmental action.
Bentley says the L in MALA can stand for any optimistic L ideas, like laugh, learn, live, love, and lead. It represents the mindset he has, and it’s reflected through his character. Specific details like an Earth flag on the back of his wheelchair, or a wood peace sign, represent his push for a sustainable and loving planet.
Specific details in MALA accentuate it. The heart in the logo is big to represent love, not hate. It’s green to represent to color of the Earth in all of its glory. If you zoom out, MALA is Bentley in movement form. It merges people who wouldn’t otherwise meet. It mentors by empowering anyone to lead with care. It centers sustainability without turning it into a purity test. And it keeps the focus on what communities can do together this week, not on the noise of yesterday’s arguments.
To Bentley, the beginning of MALA came from the idea of starting fresh. We often hear calls to go back to a time when things were supposedly better. He preaches we can’t build tomorrow by clinging to yesterday, but rather choosing to create something new.
MALA is designed to create a future around love. It’s a movement inspiring a culture of open love, freely laughing and expressing our emotions, listening and learning deeply while critically thinking. But fostering it all is peace.
An Open Invitation
Back on campus, this translates to clear on-ramps for students. In Bentley’s world, sustainability is not a side dish. It’s baked into how teams form. MALA just gives that orientation a name and a recognizable mark.
As this takes shape, expect more micro-activations than grand pronouncements. Think mixers that end with three new collaborations. Think classes that pair case discussions with community meetups. Think city partners who adopt MALA as a friendly frame for service days and climate projects. The emphasis stays on love and care in action with small, repeatable moves that add up.
It’s easy to see why so many people take his call. He makes rooms feel bigger and paths feel closer. He leaves space for students, celebrates the veterans, and insists that everyone can contribute something useful. When you carry yourself that way for years, people notice and respond.
So, where does this go next? Keep the tone neutral and the mission local, then spread throughout our Mother Earth: kindness first, planet in view, entrepreneurship as the engine. MALA is a simple container for all of that, and it reflects the same principles that have guided Bentley’s mentoring and community building from the start. If you’re looking for a lever you can actually pull, that’s it.
The invitation is open. Bring your class, your club, your company, or your crew. Merge with someone new, offer your experience, and put a little more love into the mix. That’s how movements grow, and how communities get better, together.