Rethinking impact capital allocation
through foresight.
One step back to move further.
Capital moves fast. The assumptions it's built on move slower. We help you see the invisible risks before they become expensive — using foresight as a strategic tool, not a crystal ball.
What foresight actually does.
It's not about predicting the future. At its core, foresight is a risk exercise — we develop scenarios to stress-test the assumptions embedded in your strategy against plausible disruptions.
Think of it as your invisible qualitative risk — the kind you can't point to in a regulation, but that shapes everything. Foresight makes it visible so it can be managed.
- • Analyze what's really blocking change — not just symptoms.
- • Stress-test strategy against political, climate, and social disruptions.
- • Develop deeper, longer-term strategy that holds under pressure.
Causal Layered Analysis
CLA is a rigorous foresight methodology that reveals the structural barriers, cultural assumptions, and deep narratives keeping sustainable finance on the sidelines. Endorsed by the UNESCO Chair of Future Studies.
Foresight as invisible qualitative risk
Legal risk is visible — you can point to a regulation. Foresight addresses the risks you can't see yet: misaligned assumptions, blind spots, futures not yet imagined. It's about anticipating crisis before it arrives.
Strategic Advisory
Tailored guidance to align your impact strategy with long-term systemic change.
Research
Deep dives into the narratives and structures shaping sustainable finance and impact investing.
Workshop Facilitation
Interactive sessions to uncover blind spots and co-create transformative strategies.
Speaking Engagements
Keynotes and panels on foresight, systems thinking, and the future of impact capital.
We work with organizations navigating systemic transformation.
01
Financial Institutions
Seeking to deepen their impact strategy and move beyond regulatory compliance.
02
Impact Funds
Understanding why deal flow doesn't match their thesis — and what assumptions need revisiting.
03
Program Designers
Designing programs that actually shift systems, not just produce outputs.
04
Foundations
Figuring out why their capital isn't creating the change they want.
What people say
"Resourceful and quick thinking are the words I would use to describe working with Clémence. You won't regret working with her. Always finding ways to explore and get the conversation moving on sustainable finance and sustainability as a whole."
"Detail oriented and concise at the same time, she carefully listens to you and your needs. She goes straight to the point. She will capture your impact story — and help you see what's been invisible all along."
"Clémence has always shown potential, demonstrates rigor, and has always been dynamic and adaptable. I can only recommend her."
The Uplift. Lab
Essays, foresight analysis, and systems thinking on sustainable finance, capital flows, and transformation.
Case Studies
Deep dives into how we apply foresight to complex challenges in impact capital and systemic change.
Raise
Your monthly dive into impact capital allocation, foresight & systems change.
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Finance-trained.
Systems-oriented.
Futures-focused.
After working across international financial institutions including BNP Paribas and Bank of America, Clémence Betesuku founded The Uplift. as an independent boutique to explore why sustainable finance remains structurally marginal despite decades of momentum.
Her work combines strategic foresight, systems thinking, and Causal Layered Analysis to help organizations uncover the invisible assumptions shaping capital allocation.
More about ClémenceBreak the Mold.
Break the Mold is a community for African social entrepreneurs backing early-stage founders with access, strategy, and belief. Small cohorts of 3–5 founders, built for depth not scale and a growing community of 30+ entrepreneurs across 5+ countries.
It's where the foresight thesis meets the ground: through a fellowship programme, a podcast, a newsletter, and bespoke strategy partnerships with organisations wanting to better support African entrepreneurs.
"If the communities benefiting from the partnership are absent during the design phase, the equity is compromised and funding gets misallocated."
— Clémence Betesuku, Climate Week Zurich 2025