Built on over two decades of research and evaluation experience, Mary Gray launched Upstream Learning + Evaluation in 2025—a boutique social impact consultancy rooted in relationships, responsiveness, resourcefulness, and resonance. Upstream brings learning alive by gathering insights at the source and cultivating a dynamic, nuanced understanding of numbers and stories that amplify informed action. This leads to meaningful impact that ripples outward, generating lasting change throughout organizations and communities.

Evaluation works best when it feels like a conversation—weaving together varied viewpoints through visuals that make sense and language that resonates. Upstream elevates the experience by centering what those most impacted think is working and how it could be strengthened. Findings are presented in visually engaging, conceptually accessible, and actionable ways that empower organizations and communities to chart their own course forward.

When experiential and evidence-informed learning is embedded where change begins, programs and initiatives evolve, strategies sharpen, and diverse perspectives get the space and spotlight they deserve. Approaching discovery in this way is a powerful tool to build more impactful programs, more resilient organizations, and ultimately more empowered communities.

Upstream believes in wonder, curiosity, openness, and the profound power of asking who, what, when, where, why, and how in ways that honor context and community to spark collective learning and drive sustainable change.