• Pre-conference Workshop: Friday 19 September 2003
• Main Conference: Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 September 2003

Venue: Nowik Auditorium, Charles Sturt University Albury City Campus, 
Guinea St, Albury.

Charles Sturt University’s Centre for Research into Professional Practice, Learning and Education (RIPPLE) is hosting the two-day conference, with an associated one-day workshop preceding the main conference.

RIPPLE represents a growing trend in university research, where university-wide staff teams from various fields collaborate to address real issues and current situations in our communities and groups within them. This collaborative effort can produce a multitude of positive impacts for the group and the wider community.

Established in 2002, RIPPLE is led by Director Professor Gail Whiteford, former Head of the University’s School of Community Health on the Albury-Wodonga Campus. Professor Whiteford has academic, research and professional experience in allied health services in Australia and overseas, including a recent major clinical experience project for CSU health science students in Vietnam.

Major speakers at the conference are:

• Professor Yvonna Lincoln from Texas A&M University, USA, speaking on the growing conservatism that is forcing human research to produce more statistics and graphs for “easier” consumption by policy makers and the general public; 
  (Professor Lincoln is also resenting a public lecture on the looming crisis in human research on Thursday 18 Spetember)
• Professor Joy Higgs from the University of Sydney, NSW, presenting her ideas on different types of knowledge and how it is generated through research and experience;
• Associate Professor Margaret Alston, Director of the CSU Centre for Rural Social Research, speaking on research with and about women, particularly in regional and rural areas; and,
• Professor Stephen Kemmis, Sub-Dean of Graduate Studies with CSU’s Faculty of Education, discussing the role of action research in building up education theory, policy and practice to allow teachers to work more effectively. 

• Where’s your trackie dacks and whistle? Physical education is a mandatory subject in NSW primary schools and education students teach the subject, regardless of their own abilities in the area. CSU educator Deb Clarke investigated how effective her PE subject was in preparing primary school teachers for their first PE class.
• Speaking freely on free speech. How free are we to speak in our workplaces? CSU business researcher Dr Rob Macklin will reflect on the in-depth interviews he conducted into how freely business managers and employees feel they can speak in the workplace compared to the broader community.
• Researching Indigenous communities. Using a case study which compared fear of crime among Indigenous people with a national study, CSU policing studies researcher Christine Jennett discusses the highly charged and complex issues that can confront Indigenous researchers working in Indigenous communities.
• Reconstructing reconstruction in Kosovo. Senior CSU communications researcher Professor John Tulloch examines the struggle between Western Europe and USA over the real meaning of “reconstruction” for war-torn Kosovo. This struggle is taking place in the media in a country affected by decades of oppression, control and ethnic cleansing.
• Learning together. As part of the Federal Heartlands conservation project, CSU PhD student Catherine Allan brought together broadacre farmers, government technical officers, policy makers and CSU researchers to learn about the Billabong Creek catchment and various agricultural, environmental and social problems around the town of Holbrook in southern NSW. The approach greatly increased all the participants’ understanding of local farmers and communities while promoting goodwill for the aims of Heartlands.
• Connecting with Care. CSU speech pathology researcher Dr Ruth Beecham is concerned that the growing use of science in training speech therapists makes graduates more “remote” from their patients. Dr Beecham is investigating ways of increasing the care aspect in training for health professions.
• Evaluating Earthkeepers. Just how effective are our environmental education programs? CSU researcher Rosemary Black evaluated the effectiveness of education activities carried out by the Earthkeepers environmental group, based in the Kosciuszko National Park.