The Philippine-California Advanced Research Institutes (PCARI) Project is a new approach to enhance the skills and expertise of faculty and staff of Philippine universities and colleges, through scholarships, training and research partnerships with top-notch research universities in California, USA, in the priority areas of information infrastructure development (IID) and health innovation and translational medicine (HITM).

Information infrastructure development refers to the technological and human components, networks, systems, and processes that contribute to the creation, flow or exchange, processing and management of electronic information (adapted from Braa et al., 2007).

Health innovation and translational medicine refers to the bench-to-bedside translation of basic scientific research to practicable diagnostic procedures and therapies with meaningful improvements to physical, mental or social health outcomes (adapted from Zerhouni, 2005).