Home > Regional News

13 Oct 2009
A Charles Sturt University (CSU) student has been named as a finalist in The Wine Society Young Winemaker of the Year 2009 awards. Mr Ryan Aggiss, from Flying Fish Cove winery in the Margaret River region in West Australia, is one of the 10 finalists. The Wine Society Young Winemaker of the Year awards aims to encourage and recognise excellence in young winemakers in Australia and New Zealand. Mr Aggiss is a Bachelor of Applied Science (Wine Science) student studying by distance education through the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences at CSU at Wagga Wagga. At Flying Fish Cove since 2007, the CSU student was made Winemaker the following year. “It is a great honour to be named as a finalist and to represent my state in the awards,” said Mr Aggiss. “I am looking forward to getting my degree and continuing to develop my career in the industry and believe my studies have helped greatly in my development as a winemaker.” Dr Andrew Clarke, wine science course coordinator in the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences, said, “Ryan is well deserving of this nomination. In particular, he is well known by Charles Sturt University academic staff for his excellent palate and perceptive insights into wine production processes.”

Media Officer	: Fiona Halloran
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: The winner of The Wine Society Young Winemaker of the Year 2009 will be named on Friday 20 November at a ceremony in Sydney. Mr Aggiss also spent seven years working with the Hardy wine company in the Margaret River, Clare Valley and McLaren Vale before an internship in the United States.
Print this story

13 Oct 2009
The Sprung Festival of 12 productions by third-year theatre/media students from the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Communication, was launched at the Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre (BMEC) on Tuesday 6 October. One of the festival’s production coordinators, Ms Erica Heller-Wagner, said a crowd of Bathurst residents and university students attended the launch held in conjunction with a Local Stages soiree. “During the soiree, in which local artists also performed, snippets of the Sprung Festival productions, which range from more conventional dramatic plays, to short films and physical theatre, were shown. These included previews of the theatre and physical theatre shows, and trailers of the films and television pilots,” Ms Heller-Wagner said. Tickets to Sprung Festival shows are $5 child/concession/student and $7 adult. For information and bookings call 0414 223 659.

Media Officer	: Bruce Andrews
Telephone	: 02 63386084

Media Note: Physical Theatre: 'Submerged', 5-7 November, Trevitt Pavilion, Bathurst Showground, 8pm
Print this story

13 Oct 2009
Survey figures show that National Radio News (NRN) which is compiled and broadcast 365-days a year by Charles Sturt University (CSU) journalism students at Bathurst has a weekly audience of 1.35 million adult listeners. “Not a bad result for a ‘bunch of kids in a country town’,” said NRN manager Mr Peter Hetherington. “NRN has had a real flurry of enquiries from potential new subscriber stations, with a number coming from regional areas, while others have come from key markets including suburban Sydney and the Gold Coast. NRN now has close to 90 subscriber stations right across Australia, which is about 50 per cent of all stations in the Community Radio Network. This makes NRN the most popular news service in the community radio sector, and one of the most ‘listened to’ news services of any broadcaster in Australia.” Mr Hetherington also noted that some NRN cadets had recently taken up professional roles at major regional radio stations, which was further proof of the value of the training radio cadets gain at NRN.

Media Officer	: Bruce Andrews
Telephone	: 02 63386084

Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with NRN manager Mr Peter Hetherington. The survey figures are from the McNair Ingenuity National Listener Survey.
Print this story

07 Oct 2009

Media Officer	: Wes Ward
Telephone	: 02 6051 9906

Media Note: For interviews, contact CSU Media.
Print this story

07 Oct 2009
Dance is the message this week at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Albury-Wodonga when Mr Philip Piggin from Canberra Dance Theatre visits Albury. Mr Piggin will present a public lecture, entitled ’Why Dance? A short taste of the learning, empowerment and joy that can be found through dance’, on Wednesday 7 October in the Cliff Blake auditorium at CSU’s Thurgoona site. “Visiting artists enhance the culture of our campus and the wider community also benefits by participating in sessions with the artist. Philip Piggin has a strong connection to the CSU community and Albury-Wodonga,” said acting Head of the Murray School of Education, Ms Jenni Munday. Mr Piggin will take dance workshops with CSU students from the Murray School of Education and the School of Community Health, the new ‘home of dance’ at CSU to be located in the new School of Community Health building at Thurgoona.

Media Officer	: Wes Ward
Telephone	: 02 6051 9906

Media Note: For interviews and pictures with Mr Philip Piggin, contact CSU Media.
Print this story

07 Oct 2009

Fourteen students enrolled in ecotourism at Charles Sturt University (CSU) had the opportunity to tour East Timor for two weeks, investigating and experiencing tourism and community development. Led by CSU senior lecturer in ecotourism, Dr Rik Thwaites, the students found an undeveloped country outside the capital Dili, with problems in providing suitable food, infrastructure and transport for tourism. “We always felt welcome and were treated with the utmost respect, even though the average villager outside of Dili was very poor being mainly subsistence farmers and fishers,” said third year student Sarah Ridgway. “On Atauro Island [off the main island], they had a different understanding of tourism to international visitors. The sense of tradition and community is very strong in these isolated areas and Western attitudes were actively discouraged among the villagers, so these cultural differences will be a major challenge for the future development of sustainable tourism in regions outside Dili.”

Media Officer	: Wes Ward
Telephone	: 02 6051 9906

Media Note: For interviews and pictures with Dr Rik Thwaites and CSU students involved in the East Timor trip, contact CSU Media. Students from CSU’s School of Environmental Sciences are preparing to travel to Nepal for one month late in November to investigate environmental issues around the Annapurna Conservation Area and Chitwan National Park.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
As part of a national research project involving Charles Sturt University (CSU), a workshop will be held at Corowa on Wednesday 7 October to seek community input about the challenges faced by local and regional governance bodies in the region. The workshop is one of three case studies conducted across Australia as part of the three year project, Towards Sustainable Regional Institutions: The Nature, Role and Governance Implications of Contemporary Australian Regionalism. CSU researcher Associate Professor Ian Gray is surveying public attitudes and opinions about how federalism is working. “Overall the project will work out what sort of direction regional governments in Australia might take. We’re not advocating that we get rid of the states, but we are looking at the performance of regional organisations with a view to strengthening them. This inevitably leads to rethinking the roles of each level of government,” he said. Associate Professor Gray believes the formation of catchment management authorities has, unintentionally, made regional governance more prominent, even though they have no legislative role. “The Commonwealth’s new Regional Development Australia network is also highlighting the significance of regions,” he said.

Media Officer	: Kate Roberts
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Associate Professor Ian Gray, a researcher with the Institute of Land, Water and Society at CSU. The Regional Governance Futures Workshop will be held on Wednesday 7 October at the RSL Club, 30 Betterment Parade in Corowa from 9am to 5pm. The Riverina and Murray Regional Organisation of Councils (RAMROC) and the Alliance of the Councils and Shires of the Upper Murray (ACSUM) are local partners in the research project. The workshop is being hosted by Corowa Shire Council. Towards Sustainable Regional Institutions: The Nature, Role and Governance Implications of Contemporary Australian Regionalism is funded by the Australian Research Council and led by Griffith University. Professor AJ Brown of Griffith University will address the workshop and is available for interview on 0414 782 331.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
Paramedics from around NSW and interested academics will attend a workshop at Charles Sturt University (CSU) on Wednesday 7 October to foster research in the management and operation of ambulance services. Associate Professor Peter O’Meara, the Associate Head of the CSU School of Biomedical Sciences at Bathurst, said, “CSU is hosting the Pre-hospital Research Workshop with the aim to enhance research opportunities that might lead to improved service delivery and outcomes. This is an expanding field with much potential for practical action research”. Workshop participants will explore the formulation of research questions and hear research presentations about qualitative and quantitative research from Professor O’Meara and from two prominent visiting academics; Professor Malcolm Woollard, the Visiting Professor of Pre-hospital from Coventry University in the United Kingdom, and Mr Lawrence Brown, from the United States, a Research Fellow at James Cook University in Queensland.

Media Officer	: Bruce Andrews
Telephone	: 02 63386084

Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Associate Professor Peter O’Meara. The Pre-hospital Research Workshop will be held at the Centre for Professional Development at CSU at Bathurst from 12.30pm Wednesday 7 October.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009

Media Officer	: Holly-Amber Manning
Telephone	: 02 6365 7813

Media Note: For interviews or more information please contact CSU Media.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
A final-year Charles Sturt University (CSU) student who lives on a farm near Wagga Wagga has taken out a national cropping competition aimed at fine-tuning the skills of university students. Bachelor of Science (Agriculture) student Mr Sandy Middleton from the School of Agriculture and Wine Sciences at CSU at Wagga Wagga took out the inaugural Australian University Crops Competition held at Temora from Friday 25 to Sunday 27 September. “This is an excellent achievement for Sandy with tough competition from seven universities,” said Associate Professor John Kent, Head of the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences. He has also praised the level of coaching by agronomy lecturer Dr Sergio Moroni and technical officer Mr Richard Early. The competition aimed to increase the technical knowledge and skills development of university undergraduates studying in the field of agriculture, and to increase the awareness of the cropping industry as a career opportunity. . As one of the top five students in the inaugural competition, Mr Middleton has won a four day study tour to New Zealand.

Media Officer	: Fiona Halloran
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: The Australian University Crops Competition was organised by Grain Growers Association with sponsor Syngenta Crop Protection and supported by funding from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry under the Australia’s Farming Future program. Student Mr Sandy Middleton is due to return to the Wagga Wagga Campus after the mid-semester break on Tuesday 6 October.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
In the lead up to Orange Wine Week, the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Winery is holding a wine dinner in Orange on Thursday 8 October to showcase a selection of current, pre-release and museum release wines. The dinner is being held at Union Bank Wine Bar and will be accompanied by a delicious three course dinner. The wines marry grapes from CSU’s Orange and Wagga Wagga campuses under winemaker Mr Andrew Drumm. An integral part of Australia's leading wine and food science school at the forefront of viticultural practices and wine making techniques, the 4.5 star rated Wagga Wagga winery is considering opening a cellar door outlet at the CSU Orange Campus. To book and pay for the $50 per head dinner, please phone Union Bank directly on 1300 721 731.

Media Officer	: Holly-Amber Manning
Telephone	: 02 6365 7813

Media Note:
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
The annual fundraising appeal for men’s health, particularly prostate cancer and depression, will have the support of students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga, albeit a month earlier than usual. The Moctober Challenge – Grow or Design a Mo’ will be held on campus from Friday 9 October to Friday 6 November. The challenge for men to grow a moustache and for women to design one is being supported by the University’s Division of Student Services’ Health Promotion Service and the student rural health club known as CSU WARRIAHS. Registrations for the month-long challenge will be taken on Friday 9 October with all participants needing to be clean shaven.

Media Officer	: Fiona Halloran
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: Registrations will take place from 3pm in the Crow Bar, building 20, near car park 2 Darnell Smith Drive, CSU, Wagga Wagga. The challenge is being held in October at CSU at Wagga Wagga due to student examination commitments in November. CSU student Mr Lloyd Smith is available for interview. Contact CSU Media. Further information is available from Health Promotion Officer at CSU Ms Coleen Pearce on 02 6933 2263 or send an email. CSU WARRIAHS is a rural health club uniting undergraduate health professionals across all disciplines. The club is part of a network of 22 rural health clubs at Australia universities.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
Wagga Wagga is the first port of call for the annual Rural Awareness Tour organised by the Cattle Council of Australia. The 12 members, representing key government and industry groups will visit Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga during the visit to the city on Monday 12 October. The tour will also take the group to Knight’s Meats and Cargill Beef Australia’s Wagga Wagga plant. The tour will continue in regional NSW until Thursday 15 October. While at CSU, the group representing agencies such as the Department of Agriculture, Fishing and Forestry and Meat and Livestock Australia, and AUS-MEAT Limited will meet key academics and tour facilities such as the Veterinary Clinical Centre. CSU offers educational and research programs for graduates in the fields of agricultural, animal and veterinary sciences through the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences and the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences. The Cattle Council is the peak body representing beef cattle producers in Australia.

Media Officer	: Fiona Halloran
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: For further information about the Rural Awareness Tour from Monday 12 October until Thursday 16 October, contact Cattle Council of Australia Media and Communications Officer Heidi Dennis on 02 6273 3688 or 0409 654 015. Cattle Council’s annual Rural Awareness Tour aims to provide government officials and key industry stakeholders involved in the development and implementation of federal policies affecting beef cattle producers with an on-the-ground understanding of the beef cattle industry and the affects of government policy. Members of the tour will be taken on an inspection of the Veterinary Clinical Centre and cattle yards, Agricultural Avenue, CSU, Wagga Wagga by two veterinary science students from 1pm on Thursday 15 October.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
A new online journal edited by a Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic aims to provide an outlet for research into the rapidly growing field of e-learning in organisations and the workplace. Impact: Journal of Applied Research in Workplace E-learning is founded and edited by Mr Mark Lee, an adjunct senior lecturer with CSU’s School of Education. The online journal will focus on articles relating to the design, implementation, evaluation and management of workplace e-learning across a range of sectors and industries. “The paucity of avenues to publish research and a desire to promote dialogue and collaboration between the various disciplines with an interest in this field, such as business management, human resources, adult/vocational education and IT, led to the establishment of the journal,” said Mr Lee. “Up until now there have been very few vehicles in the workplace e-learning arena that have been successful in both promoting the use of academic research to guide and inform practice, and encouraging input from practitioners to help shape and drive the future research agenda.”

Media Officer	: Kate Roberts
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: The first edition of Impact is due online in the middle of October. CSU academic Mr Mark Lee is currently involved in a project ‘Building capacity through multimodal approaches in distance education: Creating rich new layers for learning in information studies’, and research into 3D virtual learning environments in collaboration with colleagues at CSU.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturer Mr Peter Mills is excited about the coming annual Australian National Field Days (ANFD) at Borenore near Orange NSW. He is taking part in the delivery of Science in the Bush at the ANFD high school day on Tuesday 20 October where exciting exhibits, hands-on workshops and engaging talks about what is happening in science today and beyond will be on show. As the outreach partner of this Australian Government initiative, CSU will deliver a workshop titled Super Botany. Based on the highly successful Science in the City at the Australian Museum, Science in the Bush enables local scientists and educators to bring the excitement and discovery of science to school children in rural NSW. Science in the Bush at ANFD is part of the Science in the City Project run by the Australian Museum with Executive Partner the University of Sydney and Outreach Partner CSU.

Media Officer	: Holly-Amber Manning
Telephone	: 02 6365 7813

Media Note:
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
The collaboration between Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Orange and local small schools has produced a successful series of science demonstrations over the past year. The latest school to benefit from the academic knowledge at CSU was Cumnock Public School, with 18 students in Years 4, 5 and 6 visiting the Orange Campus last week for a three-hour demonstration titled ‘Introduction to Micro-organisms’. “The Charles Sturt University academics offer a great hands-on and expert component that isn't always easy to achieve in schools,” said Cumnock Public School teacher Alison Croker.“It was a great experience and one we're very keen to do again.” CSU School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences academics Mr Peter Mills, Dr Yann Guisard, Dr Scott Andrew and Mr Peter Anderson gave the students an understanding of fungi, viruses and bacteria with practical experiments.

Media Officer	: Holly-Amber Manning
Telephone	: 02 6365 7813

Media Note: For interviews please contact CSU Media.
Print this story

06 Oct 2009
As part of Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) commitment to enhancing and ensuring its future environmental sustainability, a new 22 700 litre tank has been installed at the Transport Office at the Bathurst Campus to harvest rainwater to clean the University’s fleet of vehicles. The tank and related equipment were purchased with a $5 000 grant funded under the CSU Sustainability Grants program. The manager of CSU Green, Mr William Adlong, said, “The Bathurst Campus rainwater tank is the first project to be completed under CSU’s new Sustainability Grants, which are available for different projects across CSU’s campuses. The water tank will enable the University to keep vehicles presentable even if local water restrictions are imposed. Also, we hope that the tank will be a visual reminder to staff and students of the range of actions they might consider to help us conserve water and energy and reduce our ecological footprint”.

Media Officer	: Bruce Andrews
Telephone	: 02 63386084

Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Mr William Adlong.
Print this story

29 Sep 2009
There will be a rare opportunity to hear first-hand of the success of one man’s dedication to renewing the drought ravaged rural landscapes of Australia when grazier, horse-breeder, author and founder of Natural Sequence Farming (NSF), Mr Peter Andrews, addresses a public forum in Wagga Wagga from 6pm on Tuesday 29 September. During the event, co-hosted by the International Centre of Water for Food Security (IC WATER) at Charles Sturt University (CSU) and Wagga Wagga City Council, Mr Andrews will outline the workings of his Natural Sequence Farming. Read more here.

Media Officer	: Fiona Halloran
Telephone	: 02 6933 2207

Media Note: The public forum, co-hosted by IC WATER at CSU and Wagga Wagga City Council, will be held from 6pm until 7.30pm on Tuesday 29 September in the Civic Theatre in Baylis Street Wagga Wagga. For interviews with Mr Peter Andrews, contact NSF coordinator Mr Duane Norris on 02 4360 2188 or 0425 777454.
Print this story

29 Sep 2009
When the Australian University Games began on the Gold Coast on Monday 28 September, Mr Charles Croucher, a Charles Sturt University (CSU) journalism student at the School of Communication at Bathurst, had the important role of Master of Ceremonies at the opening ceremony held at Sea World. CSU is represented by a team of 140 students from its campuses at Albury-Wodonga, Wagga Wagga, Bathurst and Orange. They are competing in athletics, basketball, beach volleyball, fencing, handball, hockey, lawn bowls, rugby union 7s, netball, touch football, ultimate frisbee, volleyball and water polo. Manager of the CSU team and student support officer at CSU at Orange, Mr Nik Granger, said, “We anticipate strong performances from the women’s basketball, women’s hockey, rugby union 7s and men’s water polo. Two of our recently enrolled international students will be competing in handball and water polo.” Go, CSU, go!

Media Officer	: Bruce Andrews
Telephone	: 02 63386084

Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews. The Australian University Games run from Monday 28 September to Saturday 3 October 2009.
Print this story

29 Sep 2009
Horse lovers are champing at the bit to attend the next school holiday Equine School at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Orange after positive feedback about the previous event. The organiser of the Equine School, Ms Cheryl Gander, from the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences says, “The School caters for all age groups and experience levels. Admissions are open until Wednesday 7 October for the Spring Equine School, which will be held from Tuesday 13 to Friday 16 October.” Participant Ms Rebecca Cady said, “Not only did I receive expert riding instruction which highlighted some riding problems I needed to correct to get my horse working better, I also learnt a lot about my horse's health and nutrition. The School included riding tuition of up to four hours per day in two sessions as well as classroom lessons and practical ground lessons like float loading, working with a young horse, and lunging. Everyone at the camp was so helpful and I made many new friends in those four days.”

Media Officer	: Holly-Amber Manning
Telephone	: 02 6365 7813

Media Note: The four-day school is run by highly regarded and qualified instructors. The Equine Centre at CSU at Orange even has a selection of quiet horses that are available for hire during the School. For enquiries please phone Ms Cheryl Gander on 02 63657 850 or mobile 0417 665 324.
Print this story