The idea that employment automatically leads to personal well-being and social inclusion is being questioned by a Charles Sturt University (CSU) researcher. In an address to the 2009 Social Inclusion Forum in Melbourne on Thursday 25 June, Dr Helen Masterman-Smith will question what, if anything, the Federal Government’s Social Inclusion Agenda (SIA) has done to address the kinds of barriers that low paid workers encounter. “Labour market participation is a cornerstone of the whole-of-government approach that the Commonwealth is developing to improve social inclusion. However, its SIA recognises that low pay and poor job quality often derail this key objective.” A sociology lecturer and co-author of the book Living Low Paid, Dr Masterman-Smith says the difficulties of ‘making work pay’ at the bottom end of the labour market is a social inclusion challenge that has yet to receive the policy or public attention it warrants. She will also comment on whether the Australian labour market and economy can actually deliver a ‘just transition’ to a low-carbon economy, through the Emissions Trading Scheme, or whether such a transition will simply reproduce current labour market inequalities.  

The extensive research work of Charles Sturt University (CSU) ecologist, Associate Professor Gary Luck in the area of biodiversity conservation has been publicly acknowledged in the 2009 Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence. The Vice-Chancellor and President of CSU Professor Ian Goulter announced on Monday 22 June the recipients of this year’s awards to academic and general staff. The Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Research Excellence has gone to Associate Professor Luck from the School of Environmental Sciences  at CSU at Albury-Wodonga and a member of the University’s Institute for Land, Water and Society. His internationally recognised work focuses on two key areas in ecosystem services and conservation near human settlements. Ms Kristy Robson from the School of Community Health at CSU at Albury-Wodonga has been named winner of the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Professional Excellence for her work the University’s Allied Health Clinic where podiatry and other students obtain clinical experience. There are two recipients of the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence in lecturer Ms Amanda Davies from the School of Policing Studies at CSU at Goulburn and lecturer Dr Jennifer Sappey from the School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies at CSU at Bathurst. Awards for excellence in leadership, performance and programs that enhance learning have also been announced. Professor Goulter will present the awards during ceremonies at Bathurst on Tuesday 30 June and at Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 1 July.

A pharmacy student at Charles Sturt University (CSU) has been named the NSW Pharmacy Student of Year by the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA). Mr Lloyd Smith was named the winner in Sydney on Saturday 13 June during a pharmacy expo hosted by the PSA. Sponsored by the company Alphapharm, the competition tests the communication and counselling skills of final year pharmacy students. Mr Smith will now compete for the national title of Pharmacy Student of the Year during the PSA’s annual Pharmacy Australia Congress in Sydney from Thursday 15 to Sunday 18 October. Mr Smith, from Broken Hill, is in his fourth year of Bachelor Pharmacy at CSU at Wagga Wagga. He is also the Head Resident of the Halls of Residence at the University’s South Campus in Wagga Wagga and involved in a number of student organisations including the Pharmers’ Society and rural health club, WARRIAHS. “Lloyd represents all that is great about pharmacy students at CSU beyond their academic achievements. Lloyd has good communication and leadership skills, a commitment to the community in which he lives and a burning desire to serve the profession well in regional NSW,” said Associate Professor Lyn Angel, Head of the School of Biomedical Sciences.

A veterinary science student at Charles Sturt University (CSU) is driving the renewal of environmental activism within the student body at CSU at Wagga Wagga. While a first year student in 2008, Ms Gemma Hawkins from Wagga Wagga established the Eco Active Club with 10 inaugural student members. Support has risen to 50 members in 2009. The group is involved with environmental advocacy in areas such as recycling, promoting transport such as bus and cycling and annual events like Clean Up Australia Day, Earth Hour and World Environment Day. The club also organises student outdoor activities such as rock climbing. With the support of the CSU Division of Facilities Management, Ms Hawkins pushed ahead with a student vegetable garden on campus with the first planting taking place in early June. “I’m hoping the concept of the garden will eventually expand to a common art space for students and the wider community,” said Ms Hawkins. “I feel there is a culture of change sweeping through the University and the student body is embracing action and more practical outcomes for the environment.”

Igniting an interest in all areas of science is the goal behind expos being hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Albury-Wodonga this week. Local high and primary school students will attend the Science in the Bush expo in Albury on Thursday 25 and Friday 26 June. The days will include exhibitions, interactive talks, shows and workshops about all things science. Topics to be presented by a range of science organisations such as CSU, The University of Sydney, the Powerhouse Museum and Australian Museum include: ‘Life in a bucket of dirt’; ‘I like to move it, move it’; ‘All from a drop of blood’; and ‘Invertebrates, the backbones of our rivers’. Science in the Bush is hosted by CSU as a part of the Science in the City project run by the Australian Museum and its Executive Partner, The University of Sydney. A comprehensive program of activities can be found here.

Three expos are being held in north east Victoria this week to showcase Australian tertiary institutions and courses on offer in 2010. Over 40 institutions including Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be represented at the information days being held in Wangaratta today, Tuesday 23 June and in Albury-Wodonga on Wednesday 24 June. An earlier event was held in Shepparton on 22 June. Representatives from local and interstate universities, institutes of NSW TAFE and private providers are available to discuss career options with Years 11 and 12 students from Victoria and NSW. “The days present a great opportunity to find out about the courses of interest in one place at one time,” said CSU Prospective Student Adviser, Ms Rebecca Gale Collins.

Researchers from Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Institute of Land, Water and Society (ILWS)  will meet at Wagga Wagga for two days this week to focus on setting a research agenda to tackle the big issues facing the Murray Darling Basin. Institute Director Professor Max Finlayson said, “the inaugural forum is aimed at addressing the issues which are really challenging Australians in this region, such as learning to live with climate change and ensuring we maintain healthy people, communities and landscapes.” Around 70 CSU researchers based across the University will attend the forum and talk about environmental issues including restoring and sustaining our wetlands and valuing ecosystem services. Social researchers will focus on areas such as the future for regional natural resource management, human wellbeing and healthy communities, and developing regional business enterprise.  “It is important to get our researchers into one room to sit together and focus on the big issues at hand. We are all doing individual research projects but the old adage that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of the parts’ rings true,” Professor Finlayson said.

Igniting an interest in all areas of science is the goal behind expos being hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Albury-Wodonga and Wagga Wagga in June. Local high and primary school students will attend the Science in the Bush Expos at Wagga Wagga on Monday 22 and Tuesday 23 June and in Albury on Thursday 25 and Friday 26 June. The days will include exhibitions, interactive talks, shows and workshops about all things science. Topics to be presented by a range of science organisations including CSU, The University of Sydney, the Powerhouse Museum and Australian Museum include Fibre Optics; Hot Rocks; Electric Soils; Forensics; and A Look Inside the Cranium. Science in the Bush is hosted by CSU as a part of the Science in the City project run by the Australian Museum and Executive Partner the University of Sydney. A comprehensive program of activities can be found here.

Three expos to be held in northeast Victoria next week over three days will showcase Australian tertiary institutions and courses on offer in 2010. Over 40 institutions including Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be represented at the information days to be held in Shepparton on Monday 22 June, Wangaratta on Tuesday 23 June and Albury-Wodonga on Wednesday 24 June. Representatives from local and interstate universities, institutes of NSW TAFE and private providers will be available to discuss career options with Years 11 and 12 students from Victoria and NSW over the three days. “The days present a great opportunity to find out about the courses students are interested in one place at one time,” said CSU Prospective Student Adviser, Ms Rebecca Gale Collins.