In early February, CASE held its first Advancement in the Middle East Conference at the University of Wollongong in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

CASE has seen an increase in membership in the region as institutions in the Middle East are beginning to invest in advancement, says Chua Beng Hwee, executive director of CASE Asia-Pacific.

The conference featured sessions that covered all areas of advancement, including alumni relations, marketing, communications and fundraising. These sessions shared innovative ideas from around the world and showcased talent, techniques and culture in the Middle East.

It was important to focus on tactics that would be successful in the Middle East because not all advancement tactics that work well in Western countries will be successful in Middle Eastern nations, says Lea Sublett, conference faculty member and manager of alumni affairs at Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. For example, when planning an event, advancement staff need cultural awareness about what's acceptable.

"The countries making up the Middle East region are so different," Sublett says. "There is not a one-size-fits-all approach to working across the region."

Look for a full MEAC report in the upcoming March/April edition of Currents.