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BATHURST
Home > Regional News > Bathurst
Call to rethink investment in land conservation
10 Mar 2009
 Governments across Australia have spent billions of dollars on programs to encourage rural landholders to implement sustainable farming and biodiversity conservation practices, but has this money been well spent? Drawing on his research in south eastern Australia, Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic Professor Allan Curtis will address this question when he speaks at the Fenner Conference on the Environment in Canberra on Wednesday 11 March. Professor Curtis will highlight the reality that most conservation work undertaken by private landholders is not funded by governments and that government investment in conservation programs, particularly those that invest in building and engaging human and social capital in rural communities, makes a difference. “The ‘business as usual’ approaches to engaging rural landholders are unlikely to work in the future given the remarkable change occurring as a large proportion of longer-term owners leave the land,” he said.
Media Note: For interviews contact CSU Media. Professor Allan Curtis, Professor of Integrated Environmental Management at CSU at Albury-Wodonga, will speak on Wednesday 11 March at the Fenner Conference on the Environment, Shine Dome, Gordon St, Canberra. Print this story Marking the years
10 Mar 2009
 While 2009 provides Charles Sturt University (CSU) with an opportunity to celebrate its 20th anniversary, the year is also a time to honour the 114-year tradition of excellence and innovation in teaching, learning and research. The University was established when the Charles Sturt University Act was passed by the NSW Parliament in July 1989, however the institution’s history can be traced back to the Bathurst Experimental Farm, established in 1895.The official opening ceremony for the University’s 20th anniversary will be held from 11am, Thursday 12 March, in Joyes Hall at CSU at Wagga Wagga. Read more here.
Media Note: CSU Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) Professor Lyn Gorman is available for interview about the University’s 20-th anniversary. A copy of Professor Gorman's speech to the 20th anniversary opening is available from at the end of the CSU news release here. Manager of CSU Archives Mr Wayne Doubleday is available for interview about the University's history. Photos of the official opening of the 20-th anniversary are also available. Contact CSU Media. Print this story Jobs, jobs, jobs at fair
10 Mar 2009
.JPG) The prospect of gaining fresh employment leads was so inviting to a Charles Sturt University (CSU) distance education student that he travelled from Adelaide to attend the University’s Careers Fair at Bathurst on Monday 9 March. Mr Paul Cooper has studied a Bachelor of Business (Agricultural Commerce) with the School of Management and Marketing by distance education and will graduate at CSU at Orange later in March. “This is a great way to kick off career employment opportunities,” Mr Cooper said. “It’s an excellent meeting place for employers and graduates, and has confirmed for me that networking is the way find a great job. It has definitely been worth coming over from Adelaide to attend this event.” Ms Vicki Anderson, Student Services Career Counsellor and event organiser, said that the 36 employer organisations who participated all gave her positive feedback, as did the many CSU students who attended.
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews. Employer groups participating at the CSU Careers Fair included the Australian Defence Forces, government departments, education employers, international accountancy firms such as KPMG and Ernst & Young, and regional firms WHK, Morse Group Accountants, and Boyce Chartered Accountants. Print this story Careers Fair for employers and CSU students
05 Mar 2009
 Despite a gloomier national and international economic outlook, 36 organisations that employ university graduates will participate at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) 2009 Careers Fair at the Bathurst Campus on Monday 9 March. The Event Manager and Student Services Career Counsellor at CSU Bathurst, Ms Vicki Anderson, said that the global financial crisis was now impacting on jobs nationally and the next few years could make it harder for graduates to attain a job or career in their chosen area. “Employers of graduates are now making hard decisions about where they can recruit the best graduates. The world of graduate employment has turned face-about, and it is now an employers’ market,” Ms Anderson said. “The 2009 Careers Fair will showcase Charles Sturt University as a professional organisation that encourages its students to be proactive in shaping their futures.” Employer organisations will host displays and present workshops throughout the day to educate students on the attributes that graduates require, and CSU representatives from Alumni, Marketing, Career Services and Faculties will also attend to advise students.
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with Ms Vicki Anderson. The Manager of Stakeholder Relations at CSU, Ms Jan Hudson, will open the 2009 Careers Fair at the CD Blake Auditorium (Gynasium) at the CSU Bathurst Campus at 10.45am, and the Fair will conclude at 2.30pm. Information about the 2009 Careers Fair can be found here and the Program can be found here.
Print this story Victimology explored at 'stalking' conference
03 Mar 2009
.jpg) The development of the study of victimology will be explored by Dr Diane Westerhuis, lecturer in Justice Studies at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies, during the conference, 'Stalking' on Friday 6 March in Bathurst. “Victimology is an indication of the concerns we have as a society about ever-increasing levels of violent crime,” Dr Westerhuis said. “In order to understand how to respond to such levels of violence and to program for prevention, we need to study the impact such violence has upon the innocent, particularly children and women, who are most often the victims. Victims of stalking are particularly vulnerable, because the nature of stalking affects the victim’s long term psychological, social and interpersonal functioning. This is a particularly difficult issue to research, because stalking is not always reported, and you will not find stalking identified in the latest crime statistics.”
Media Note: Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews with CSU lecturer Dr Diane Westerhuis. The state-wide conference on 'Stalking' will be held on Friday 6 March from 9.30am to 4.30pm at the Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre, William St, Bathurst. Please direct all conference enquiries to the Central West Women's Health Centre, Bathurst, on 02 6331 4133. Other speakers at the conference include keynote speaker Mr David Vaile, Executor Director of the Cyberspace Law and Policy Centre, University of New South Wales (the latest research and laws relating to cyber stalking), Ms Fiona Gray, Solicitor, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions ('Prosecuting stalking cases'), and Dr Shaunagh Foy, Forensic Profiler ('Profiling perpetrators').
Print this story The business of AIDS
03 Mar 2009
Many business leaders around the world are aware that they must ‘do something’ about HIV/AIDS. However, in order to take effective action, they need to understand the diverse economic, social, political and health issues relating to the epidemic. Charles Sturt University (CSU) postgraduate student Ms Saskia Faulk aims to develop a risk management tool for companies seeking to understand the extent and dynamics of HIV/AIDS so they can put into place HIV/AIDS workplace programs. Ms Faulk is completing a CSU Doctorate of Business Administration by distance education from Switzerland. Ms Faulk has also co-written a book, AIDS and Business, which presents case studies of businesses in countries including Brazil, India, Mexico, Morocco, Thailand, South Africa, and Switzerland. “The spread of HIV/AIDS affects businesses in all sectors, all industries and all countries, so companies and organisations must take action,” she said.
Media Note: For interviews with CSU postgraduate student Ms Saskia Faulk, contact CSU Media. AIDS and Business by Ms Faulk and Mr Jean-Claude Usunier is published this month by Routledge. Print this story Students forge new ground in Pakistan
03 Mar 2009
 Four Charles Sturt University (CSU) students from the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences have returned with a wealth of experience after a three week visit to Pakistan where they worked with dairy farmers to improve the nutrition and health of their animals. A highlight for the CSU students Ms Amanda-Lee Charman, Mr Rhys Duncan, Ms Emma Hand and Mr Shahid Khalfan was conducting a seminar for 40 Pakistani students on topics including calf management, animal nutrition and health and fodder production. “The visit broke through new frontiers as the CSU students introduced new concepts in learning,” said CSU’s Professor Peter Wynn, who is leading an Australian project to assist Pakistani dairy farmers. “Our host, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Veterinary and Animal Science in the city of Lahore was very interested with the students’ approach to the seminars and he hoped that his University would be able to adopt similar ‘problem solving’ teaching techniques.”
Media Note: CSU is running a long term project through the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) which aims to improve extension services for the 8.5 million small dairy farmers of Pakistan. The program is a part of the Australian Government’s commitment to the Pakistani Government under the Agriculture Sector Linkages Program (ASLP). CSU Professor of Animal Production Peter Wynn and the students, based in Wagga Wagga, are available for interview. Contact CSU Media.
Print this story A new tool for fruit fly control
03 Mar 2009
 Two species of parasitic wasps, identified in southern NSW during on-going research at Charles Sturt University (CSU), could unlock new ways to fight fruit fly in Australia. PhD student Mrs Jennifer Spinner has been collecting fruit ‘stung’ by fruit fly in home gardens during the fruit fly season (October to May) in Albury, Cootamundra, Ganmain, Gundagai, Lake Cargelligo, Lockhart and Wagga Wagga. The fruit has been held in a laboratory at CSU at Wagga Wagga in a controlled temperature environment until adult fruit fly or parasitic wasps emerge. “I am examining whether the wasps are present in inland NSW and whether large releases of the wasps could be used for the biological control of fruit fly,” said Mrs Spinner. The female wasp lays her eggs inside the fruit fly larvae, which hatch and feed on the fruit fly larvae, ultimately killing the pest. In 2009, the PhD student will travel to Guatemala, Hawaii and Mexico where releases of parasitoids have improved the management of fruit fly.
Media Note: Mrs Spinner is a student with the Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant Biosecurity based at the E H Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation, an alliance between CSU and the NSW Department of Primary Industries in Wagga Wagga. The research project is supported by Riverina Citrus and Horticulture Australia Limited and supervised by Professor Geoff Gurr, Dr Olivia Kvedaras and Mr Andrew Jessup. Mrs Spinner recently presented the early findings of her research ‘Parasitic wasps: a new tool for fruit fly management in Australia?’ to the 3rd International Symposium for the Biological Control of Arthropods in New Zealand. Print this story Uniting through faith
24 Feb 2009
 Fourteen visitors from Indonesia touring Victoria and Tasmania to bring closer understanding between Muslims and Christians will meet with members of the Border community at Charles Sturt University (CSU) on Tuesday 3 March. Hosted by the Uniting Church in Australia, the group particularly aims to increase mutual understanding and cultural appreciation between the Muslim majority of Indonesia and Australia’s Christian communities. While in Albury, the group will visit the University’s facilities and speak with CSU students at Thurgoona. “The University hopes the visit will enhance understanding and relations between the faiths and our cultures,” said visit coordinator and CSU student counsellor Mr Geoff Simmons. The visit will include a public forum hosted by CSU Professor The Rev. James Haire from the University’s School of Theology in Canberra.
Media Note: For interviews with CSU student counsellor Geoff Simmons on Monday 2 March, or with Professor The Rev. James Haire who has worked in this field and Indonesia for many years, contact CSU Media. The public forum, Social Justice in the Christian and Islamic Faiths, will start at 7.30pm on Tuesday 3 March at the Nowik Lecture Theatre, Guinea St, Albury. Print this story Senior international appointment for CSU scientist
24 Feb 2009
 International recognition for his expertise in wetland management has led to the reappointment of a senior Charles Sturt University (CSU) scientist to a scientific panel for the international Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. Director of CSU’s Institute for Land, Water and Society Professor Max Finlayson will be a member of Ramsar's Scientific and Technical Review Panel from 2009 to 2012, specialising in the effects of climate change on wetlands and water and the social and economic effects on people who rely on them. Professor Finlayson said the appointment is a great honour and is recognition of scientific expertise available at CSU. The Ramsar Convention, established in 1975, aims to protect wetlands worldwide, including the iconic Barmah Forest and Lower Lakes on the Murray River and the Macquarie Marshes in central NSW.
Media Note: For interviews with ILWS Director Professor Max Finlayson, contact CSU Media. Print this story |
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