Before sunrise, a dedicated group of Charles Sturt University (CSU) students are focussed on evaluating the quality of meat carcasses. The students enrolled in animal, equine, agricultural and veterinary sciences arrive at companies like Cargill Beef Australia and Knights Meats in Wagga Wagga and the Junee Abattoir as early as six o’clock in the morning to learn about carcass evaluation and meat quality.  The student group is led by CSU’s carcass evaluation expert and fifth year Veterinary Science student Mr Richard Sanders.  “The importance of maintaining the flow of trained young experts in the speciality field of Meat Science to service the needs of the beef, sheep and pork industries is not lost on these companies,” said CSU Professor of Animal Production Peter Wynn. “The companies willingly make their facilities available each year for the education of our students.” The students will attend a carcass evaluation workshop sponsored by Meat and Livestock Australia in Armidale in early July.  They will then have a chance to participate in an elite national training workshop and selection in an Australian team to compete in international carcass evaluation competitions.  “None of these opportunities would be possible without the support of the management of these companies,” said Professor Wynn.

 

Television production students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga have broken new ground in their on-going development of links with industry. The Society of Motion Pictures and Television Engineers (SMPTE) has agreed to the establishment of a CSU student chapter of the Society. The Society's Board of Governors approved the move during a meeting in Atlanta in the United States on Thursday 4 June. The move is the inaugural student chapter in Australia. Formed in 1916, the SMPTE is regarded as the leading technical society for the motion imaging industry. "This new relationship will give CSU students access to conferences, papers, scholarships, guest lectures and of course international industry contacts," said television production course co-ordinator Mr Patrick Sproule. "I believe the approval to form the CSU student chapter shows an enormous respect for the course at Charles Sturt University as well as the Society's recognition of the importance of investment in education in the TV and film industries. A special thanks to past chairman of SMPTE Australian Section, Mr John Maizels, for recommending the formation of the student chapter and shepherding us through due process." Meanwhile, the SMPTE Australian Section has donated $6 000 so 85 Bachelor of Arts (Television Production) students at CSU at Wagga Wagga can attend the SMPTE09 conference in Sydney in July.

The SMPTE provides its members in the motion imaging field with the latest technology information and education on a rapidly changing industry. The biennial SMPTE09 conference and exhibition will be held at Darling Harbour, Sydney from Tuesday 21 July to Saturday 25 July. CSU lecturer Mr Patrick Sproule from the School of Visual and Performing Arts at CSU at Wagga Wagga is available for interview from Wednesday 10 June.

Commissioner of the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) in NSW, Mr John Pritchard and former Senator and Australian Democrats leader, Ms Lyn Allison will headline a national conference focusing on ethics in the community next week. The 16th annual Australian Association for Professional and Applied Ethics (AAPAE) Conference will be hosted by Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Policing Studies in Goulburn, NSW from Tuesday 9 June to Thursday 11 June. Conference convenor and CSU lecturer in Policing Studies Dr Anna Corbo Crehan says around 50 delegates from universities and the professions are expected to attend to participate in discussion of issues in applied and professional ethics. Dr Corbo Crehan will present a paper entitled ’Appropriate police discretion and Indigenous over-representation in the Criminal Justice System’. Other presentations will focus on ethics in policing; the socio-legal ethics of vulnerable people; and ethics and money in sport.

The Australian Association for Professional and Applied Ethics Conference will run from Tuesday 9 June from 10am to 2pm on Thursday 11 June. Read the conference program here. Day registrations are available and people should arrive at the venue, the Best Western Centretown, Lagoon Street, Goulburn between 8am and 9 am on the Wednesday or Thursday. The after-dinner speaker on Wednesday 10 June is barrister Mr Stephen Keim, SC who acted for Dr Mohamed Haneef in 2007. The AAPAE formed in 1993 and is a non-partisan, non-profit national umbrella organisation formed to encourage awareness of, and foster discussion of issues in, applied and professional ethics. Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews.

Water scarcity, climate change and population growth are just some of the complex factors combining to pose a threat to food security in developing countries such as Pakistan. Professor Iqrar A. Khan, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Agriculture in Faisalabad, Pakistan will speak at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Wagga Wagga on Friday, 5 June about precision agriculture, a way of preserving land and conserving water while enhancing food security. “Poverty and malnutrition are on the rise in water scarce areas,” Professor Khan said. “High dependence on agriculture and extremely low production forces smallholders to overuse limited land and water resources, causing degradation of these assets.” He says precision agriculture will require investment in new technology, capacity building and knowledge sharing. The International Centre of Water for Food Security at CSU holds monthly seminars with national and international water experts invited to discuss the emerging issues and policies dealing with sustainable management of water resources for food security.

 

Professor Iqrar A. Khan from the University of Agriculture in Pakistan will speak at 10am on Friday 5 June at David Asimus Court, Valder Way at CSU at Wagga Wagga. To attend, call Ms Tracey Wilson at IC WATER on 02 4296 5393 or send an email.

Two new wines will be released this week to add to the multi-award winning range of premium sparkling, table and fortified wines produced at the commercially run Charles Sturt University (CSU) Winery. A 2009 Cellar Reserve Pinot Noir Rosé made from premium pinot noir grapes from the cool-climate Tumbarumba region is the first Rosé made at the winery in 10 years. Mr Richard Lawson from CSU Winery described the wine as an elegant rosé with a beautiful rose petal colour with classic cherry and forest berry characters on the nose and a clean dry finish. “The second release is the 2009 Alfresco Bianco following in the footsteps of last year’s popular vintage, but the alcohol content has been dropped to six per cent which is similar to the many moscato-style wines from Italy,” he said. CSU’s Winery at Wagga Wagga is an integral part of the School of Agriculture and Wine Sciences and at the forefront of viticultural practices and winemaking techniques in Australia.

CSU wines are available for tasting and purchase at the CSU Cellar Door located at McKeown Drive (off the Coolamon Road) in Wagga Wagga. Opening hours are 11am to 5pm Monday to Friday and 11am to 4pm Saturday, Sunday and most public holidays. To arrange interviews contact Mr Richard Lawson from the CSU Winery on 02 6933 2435 or send an email. Only 200 dozen of the 2009 Cellar Reserve Pinot Noir Rosé were produced, and it is available only at the Cellar Door along with the 2009 Alfresco Bianco.

A catalogue for an art exhibition at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in 2008 has been named a joint winner in the national Museums Australia Multimedia and Publication Design Award 2009. The catalogue for the exhibition, ELEMENTS: Dianne Fogwell was produced by the CSU Art Collection and designed by Eunice Song, the Creative Director of E-Com Consulting & Design. The judges comments included “‘being a book about a book’, it has a sensibility to the artist’s medium – the designer really understands typography”.The catalogue was produced to coincide with the exhibition held during graduation ceremonies at CSU at Wagga Wagga in April 2008. A total of 406 entries were received for the awards from over 100 Australian and international organisations. The CSU Art Collection is one of 17 collections short-listed in its group, Level A Exhibition Catalogue – Small (Under 64 pages). The entries were judged on their relevance, communication clarity and degree of usability. The winners were announced on Monday 19 May as part of Museums Australia’s National Conference in Newcastle.

For further information, contact CSU Art Curator Mr Thomas A. Middlemost on 02 6925 3666.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic aims to draw attention to the impacts of climate change on low paid Australian workers. Sociology lecturer and co-author of the book Living Low Paid, Dr Helen Masterman-Smith will present a seminar in Sydney on Monday 1 June to discuss the barriers to social and workplace citizenship that low paid workers experience. These barriers are highly relevant to whether the Australian labour market and economy can actually deliver a ‘just transition’ to a low-carbon economy or whether such a transition will simply reproduce current labour market inequalities. “If employee engagement is seen as critical to greening Australian workplaces, what does the lack of voice and dignity that many low paid workers experience in their jobs mean for the feasibility of a just transition to a low-carbon economy?” asks Dr Masterman-Smith. “For all its shortcomings, delaying the emissions trading scheme to 2011 not only delays the necessary reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, it also delays the labour market transition to sustainable workplaces and work practices, which has health and other social implications.”

Dr Helen Masterman-Smith is a lecturer in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at CSU at Wagga Wagga. She is a guest speaker at Sydney University’s Department of Political Economy Seminar Series on Monday 1 June from 1pm to 2pm, room 397 at the Merewether Building, Sydney University. Dr Masterman-Smith will present a seminar entitled 'Climate Change and the Political Economy of Everyday Life'. Her book, Living Low Paid: The dark side of prosperous Australia is published by Allen & Unwin.

 

Water management issues in China and Pakistan will be in the spotlight when two international visitors present seminars hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) and the International Centre for Water for Food Security (IC WATER) on Thursday 28 May. Director of Pakistan’s Water Management Research Centre, Professor Niaz Ahmed Rai, will talk on the current water scenario in Pakistan and intervention for sustainable use. The Centre is located at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan. Director of China’s National Research Centre for Resettlement, Professor Guoqing Shi, will discuss challenges and issues for water management in China including flooding, water shortage, water pollution and water turbidity. This Centre is part of Hohai University, Nanjing, China. The International Centre of Water for Food Security at CSU holds monthly seminars with national and international water experts invited to discuss the emerging issues and policies dealing with sustainable management of water resources for food security.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will mark its 20^th anniversary with a gala commemorative dinner at Bathurst on Tuesday 2 June. Some of the 300 guests will travel from overseas to attend the dinner. Dignitaries include the heads of other universities, politicians, business leaders, academics, staff and alumni. CSU’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) and Chairperson of the 20^th Anniversary Committee, Professor Lyn Gorman, said the dinner is an opportunity to celebrate the University’s past and its future. “Charles Sturt University is Australia’s sixth largest university, and it has established itself as the University of inland Australia. It is the leading provider of distance education, with 57 per cent of our 35 000 students studying by distance mode in over 80 countries. Charles Sturt University will continue to support our regional communities and provide graduates for a range of professions needed throughout Australia and elsewhere in the world.”

Contact CSU Media to arrange interviews. The CSU commemorative dinner will be held at the CD Blake Auditorium at CSU at Bathurst from 7.30pm on Tuesday 2 June. Read more about CSU’s 20^th anniversary here.

During Orientation 2009, students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) helped raise money for the organisation, Aussie Helpers. Aussie Helpers is a charity that assists farming families during drought.  The student leaders at CSU at Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Dubbo, Orange and Wagga Wagga collected a total of $5 883 during Orientation 2009 in February. “The Division of Student Services would like to thank all of the student leaders for working so hard to fundraise money for this year’s charity,” said Student Support Officer Mr Christopher Roche.  “It was a great achievement.  We would also like to thank the students, parents and staff that donated money.”  Each year student leaders select an organisation to fundraise for during Orientation. Aussie Helpers will be using the donation to assist families affected by drought and the Victorian bushfires. Student leaders will present a cheque to Aussie Helpers’ co-founder Mr Brian Egan at 10am Friday 29 May outside the student canteen, building 20, near car park 2, Darnell Smith Drive, CSU at Wagga Wagga.

 

Aussie Helpers and its 40 volunteers aim to lift the spirits of those families severely affected by drought in rural Australia.  Aussie Helpers operate in QLD, NSW, VIC, SA and Tasmania.