The CALESA Project (Erasmus+ Capacity Building in the Field of Higher Education 609668-EPP-1-2019-1-ES-EPPKA2-CBHE-JP – Key Action 2), funded by the European Commission and implemented between January 15, 2020, and January 14, 2024, represented a highly successful collaboration between European and Philippine universities. Its primary objective was to strengthen academic research capacities, promote multilingualism, modernize legislative frameworks, and reinforce inter-institutional cooperation. Through this initiative, the fundamental values of the European Union—human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, and the rule of law—were actively fostered.
Under the leadership of the University of Málaga, and in close collaboration with Nova University of Lisbon, the University of Deusto, University College Dublin (UCD), the University of the Philippines (UP), Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU), the University of San Agustín (USA), Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU), and the Philippine Judicial Academy of the Supreme Court (PHILJA), the CALESA project achieved remarkable milestones, including:
- Participation in 21 international scientific seminars and congresses, led by experts, alongside the publication of three research studies dedicated to legislative modernization and Filipino-Spanish comparative law.
- Enrichment of the academic curriculum in Philippine universities through the creation or revision of ten courses covering key areas such as human rights, the rule of law, regional integration, and legal modernization.
- Contribution to the modernization of Philippine law by translating into English and publishing in the Philippines key reference works on Spanish law, addressing topics such as the General Theory of Obligations and Contracts, Tourism Law, and the Modernization of Spanish Civil Law.
- Beyond its academic contributions, CALESA established itself as a strategic platform for collaboration with the UP Institute of Government and Law Reform, the entity responsible for promoting legislative modernization in the country, as well as with the Supreme Court of the Philippines. In this context, the project played a pivotal role in defining strategic lines of action for legal cooperation between the Philippines and Spain.
The new project, CALESA DIGITAL, emerges as a natural continuation of this initiative, building upon the achievements of CALESA while focusing its efforts on consolidating the established partnerships. This new phase is centered on digital law regulation and the digitalization of justice administration, key aspects in the evolution of contemporary legal frameworks.
Preserving the strong network of Spanish and Philippine institutions that formed the core of CALESA, CALESA DIGITAL is further enriched by the addition of two new strategic partners: the Department of Justice of the Philippines and the University of Granada in Spain, further expanding its reach and impact in the development of digital law in both countries.