CLDP sponsored the participation of technology transfer specialists from Algeria, Morocco, Sri Lanka, and Tunisia to attend the 2018 Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Annual Meeting in Phoenix, AZ from February 18-21, 2018. This event, coupled with a pre-conference program focusing on contract negotiation, provided extensive training and networking on how to manage a technology transfer office. It focused on how to further research, incentivize innovation, and protect and commercialize the resulting technology and intellectual property.  CLDP’s ongoing assistance is focused on bolstering innovation and R&D commercialization in all four countries by helping to create a critical mass of in-country specialists equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to successfully commercialize discoveries made by the academic community and act as an effective interface with the business community. The program is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Middle East Partnership Initiative of the U.S. Department of State.