In a bid to help overcome the critical lack of scientists and science teachers, especially in inland Australia, Charles Sturt University will offer lucrative targeted scholarships to encourage high-quality on-campus applicants to science-based fields.

I was delighted to host the Federal Education Minister the Honourable Julie Bishop on her first visit to Charles Sturt University on 24 August. Her attendance at the University’s Wagga Wagga Campus saw her launch our state of the art Veterinary Science laboratory facility, as well as meet with our Senior Women’s network and launch important drought research in which CSU is involved.

"South America has been neglected at large by Australia," says Charles Sturt University (CSU) Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Goulter. Australia and Chile in particular will build closer ties this week when the Chilean Ambassador to Australia, His Excellency Mr Jose Luis Balmaceda, visits the Wagga Wagga Campus of CSU (Tuesday 26 September).

Professor Don Thomson from Charles Sturt University’s School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies is a Registered Psychologist and a Barrister-at-law. He was recently awarded the Australian Psychological Society (APS) College of Forensic Psychologists inaugural distinguished contributions award. He says the legal system is not loaded against the victim as often claimed. In fact, in trials where there are mulitple defendants, “research shows you are more likely to be convicted with other co-defenders than if you are tried by yourself”.

"I believe it is a worse health problem than tobacco," says Professor Patrick Ball, from Charles Sturt University’s School of Biomedical Sciences, "for the first time in human history, Type 2 Diabetes is more common than Type 1."

Earlier this month, the OECD released a report which shows that Australia spends less on early childhood education than any other nation in the industrialised world. It prompted calls from both sides of federal politics for a national approach to early childhood education. Fran Press, Charles Sturt University senior lecturer in early childhood education, says “What we have at the moment is a dog’s breakfast".

Earlier this month, a senior federal Labor MP put forward a proposal to make Year 12 compulsory for all Australian students. The proposal attracted widespread opposition, and for good reason, according to vocational education researcher Associate Professor Erica Smith from Charles Sturt University (CSU).

Cooperative agricultural research projects between the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and Charles Sturt University (CSU) was a feature of the Cambodian Prime Minister’s visit to Wagga Wagga yesterday (Thursday 12 October).

"Frankly, it’s been so low this whole season so far, that we haven’t started reporting it yet!" says Dr George Car of CSU’s School of Biomedical Sciences. He says the pollen count is the lowest ever in the ten years he has been monitoring it in the Wagga Wagga area. "In previous years, the grass pollen count would have been well into the moderate or even into the high range by mid-October."