Charles Sturt University (CSU) academics have moved into their new ‘green home’ as part of the next phase of the University’s $40 million building program at Thurgoona. The building will initially house over 20 academic, research and general staff from the new School of Business and Information Technology (SBIT). It includes a ground-breaking material which helps regulate temperatures inside buildings to reduce the need for air conditioning. Developed by German-based industrial chemical company BASF, the building material is in the form of special plaster boards and flooring screed. This material includes small granules of a waxlike material that liquefies at higher temperatures, increasing its capacity to absorb heat from surrounding air. The building also includes other energy saving and environmentally friendly features such as double glazed windows, good use of daylight to reduce the need for office lighting, rainwater collection for flushing toilets, an automated building management system to control ventilation and temperature, and roof funnels for purging hot air from the building at night. The University is awaiting final notification of the ‘green star’ rating of the building with the Green Building Council of Australia.