The views of over 400 primary school students on sustainability and social justice will come together at Charles Sturt University (CSU) on Friday 13 November.The students and their teachers will gather from seven primary schools in Albury Wodonga to put the finishing touches to their Youth Action Statement for a Sustainable Future, whichthey will present to local community and CSU dignitaries on Saturday 14 November at the Flourish festival to be held at CSU in Albury-Wodonga.The statement showcases the students' concerns and answers for current environmental and sustainability problems. Community members can also show their support by signing the Statement during the festival."The Statement contains the ideas of local primary school students about 16 leading sustainability problems and solutions which the students discussed and voted on during their visits to Charles Sturt University," said team leader of the Learning Communities project, Dr John Rafferty.Learning Communities team members have also worked with the students and their teachers to produce artworks and displays regarding various sustainability issues, from community gardens to the 'tiny house' movement. These will also be on show to their families, friends and the wider community during the Flourish festival.Flourish culminates the year-long Learning Communities project run by CSU's Institute for Land, Water and Society, and is also the final event of the 2015 Albury Wodonga Sustainable Living Week."During the free fun of Flourish, we will present music for all tastes and have guest appearances from the Sea Shepherd, the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, Animals Australia, Earthworker from Melbourne and Edgar's Mission from Lancefield, as well as local sustainability champions," Learning Communities team member, Dr Helen Masterman-Smith said. "There will be lots of opportunities to celebrate how some of the region's best students are contributing to a sustainable community in Albury-Wodonga."More information on Flourish is available here including the full program and list of partners and guests. Go to Facebook for the latest news on Flourish.

Twenty-one years of gerontology education for health care practitioners at Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be celebrated when the Australian Association of Gerontology (AAG) launches its Albury-Wodonga chapter next week.The free event at La Trobe University in Wodonga on Wednesday 11 November will feature presentations from a leading international researcher and showcase local initiatives. Local people interested in ageing are invited to attend.CSU and La Trobe University are partnering the AAG for the launch of the rural chapter and invite new members.AAG is Australia's national body promoting research and education in ageing. It links professionals working across the multidisciplinary fields of ageing and connects them with each other and with members of the community to help them collaborate and exchange information on ageing.Lecturer in gerontology at CSU's School of Humanities and Social Sciences Ms Robin Harvey said, "We invite everybody involved in aged care locally, and those interested in ageing research, to come along, bring their experience and join the conversation about building age-friendly rural communities in the Border region and around the world."Professor Mark Skinner, founding Director of the Trent Centre for Ageing and Society at Trent University in Canada, will deliver the keynote address titled 'Voluntarism and age-friendly rural communities'.Professor Skinner's research focuses on the importance of volunteers in building age-friendly communities. He will report on research undertaken in Canada, Ireland and locally in north-east Victoria in conjunction with researchers from the John Richards Initiative (JRI) at La Trobe University.Chair of Rural Aged Care Research at JRI Professor Jeni Warburton said, "This event is a great opportunity to showcase research conducted locally, and to reflect on the similarities and differences between other countries and rural north-east Victoria."

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will host a chess challenge for school students in Albury-Wodonga on Wednesday 4 November.Up to 100 primary and secondary school students from around the region are expected to attend the inaugural CSU Albury-Wodonga Schools Chess Challenge from 9am to 2pm. Two perpetual trophies will be presented to the winning students by Director of the CSU Division of Student Administration Mr Matthew Evans. CSU is also sponsoring the cost of the entry fee for students as part of the Head of Campus small grants program."Charles Sturt University recognises that chess teaches students to apply knowledge and solve problems in a dynamic way and we believe that these students will be the ones that engage with universities and solve our regional challenges in the future," Mr Evans said.The Challenge is being facilitated by Tim Broome, Events Manager, Chess Kids.

Community, art, sport, music, video, education and the environment will all be celebrated at Flourish, the festival for sustainable communities, on Saturday 14 November.Flourish is the culmination of the year-long Learning Communities project run by Charles Sturt University's (CSU) Institute for Land, Water and Society. It is also the final event of Albury Wodonga Sustainability Week 2015.Learning Communities team members have worked throughout 2015 with nearly 1 000 high and primary school students from around Albury-Wodonga and North East Victoria to produce videos, art, displays and community activities that showcase the students' concerns and answers for current environmental and sustainability problems.Project leader Dr John Rafferty said the festival showcases fabulous ideas that highlight the value of higher education in helping create sustainable communities."A feature event at Flourish will be the public presentation of a Youth Action Statement for a Sustainable Future to local community dignitaries by representative students from local primary schools. Community members can also show their support by signing the Statement during the festival."The Statement contains the ideas of local primary school students about 16 leading sustainability problems and solutions which the students discussed and voted on during their visits to CSU," Dr Rafferty said.The statement was developed using democratic and consensus principles learnt during earlier visits to CSU in Albury-Wodonga by Years 5 and 6 students from eight primary schools located in Albury- Wodonga and surrounding districts.The students are also preparing displays and activities on aspects of sustainable communities that reflect their future career options, which will be presented to their families and the wider community during Flourish. More information on Flourish here. Go to Facebook https://www.facebook.com/flourishfestival/ for the latest news on Flourish.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will showcase the education of the next generation of health science and allied health professionals on Monday 2 November.Federal Assistant Minister for Science, The Hon Karen Andrews MP, will join localMP and Minister for Health, Aged Care and Sport, The Hon Sussan Ley, on a tour of the University's Centre for Community Engagement and Wellness, a purpose built primary health care facility for key allied health professions.Head of the School of Community Health at CSU in Thurgoona, Associate Professor Megan Smith, said "We are particularly looking forward to the Ministers' visit, as their portfolios of science, health and aged care align well with the work we are undertaking at the facility".Open to the public for consultation and treatment for a range of health conditions, the Centre is part of CSU's School of Community Health which provides training opportunities in a team-based clinical environment for podiatry and physiotherapy students.

The broad scope of occupational therapy (OT) as a key health profession will be on display during the annual conference at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga.The final year Bachelor of Occupational Therapy students from the University's School of Community Health are hosting the conference, Under the Umbrella: The Scope of OT from 8.30am to 5pm on Thursday 29 October.As part of their four-year degree, 29 students are involved in the event and will speak on topics about which they're passionate. The conference is open to local health practitioners as well as the wider community. The conference will cover topics such as upper limb assessment and interventions, paediatrics, issues facing new graduate OTs, mental health and rural practice. Keynote speaker is Ms Leah Wiseman, Senior Occupational Therapy Manager with Albury Wodonga Health.The 20 minute student presentations will be delivered from 10am in the Community Engagement and Wellness Centre, building 715, Ellis Street, near car park 8 and the Clinical Skills Centre, building 667, Bromfield Circuit, near car park 8.The conference is being held during OT Week 2015 from Sunday 25 to Saturday 31 October. The occupational therapy students at due to graduate from CSU in December.

The Border region is hosting film premieres with a difference as students from three local high schools examine how university education can help Australian communities be more sustainable.The five short films have been produced from photos and video footage taken by students as part of the Learning Communities project run by Charles Sturt University's (CSU) Institute for Land, Water and Society.In a 'trip of a lifetime' nearly 300 Year 10 and 11 students from Murray and James Fallon High Schools and Wodonga Senior Secondary College travelled for five days to speak with representatives from CSU in Albury-Wodonga and Melbourne and Deakin universities.They also met environmental champions from Sea Shepherd, Environmental Justice Australia, Voices of the Valley and the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and learnt how they could help address sustainability problems, regardless of the career paths they chose.CSU lecturer Dr Marie Sheahan said, "The students saw first-hand how university courses and their careers can have lasting influences on the sustainability of the community, particularly in ensuring all citizens have access to caring professionals who can help them."The next film by Year 10 students from Murray High school will be launched with their parents and friends at CSU in Albury-Wodonga from 6pm on Tuesday 27 October. All films will be shown free to the public at the Flourish Festival being held at CSU in Albury-Wodonga off Elizabeth Mitchell Drive, Thurgoona on Saturday 14 November, starting at 2pm.

Inspired by a friend, a physiotherapy student at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga will cycle from Rutherglen in Victoria to Sydney to raise money for research into brain cancer. Bachelor of Physiotherapy student Ms Sheila Smith resolved to take on the challenge after a close friend from Sydney was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2015.Ms Smith hadn't ridden a road bike until this year but she has enlisted the support of fellow physiotherapy student and avid cyclist Ms Alexandra Sutherland. The women are due to leave their hometown of Rutherglen during the second week of December. Ms Smith said, "The shared love I have with my friend for puns and elephants was the inspiration for the ride's name and logo, Riding for a Wheelie Good Cause".Funds raised during the ride go to the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation and the Nelune Foundation. Donations can be made online here. "We know the ride will be tough, both physically and mentally," said Ms Smith. "However, battling brain cancer is tougher."Supported by the student organisation, Multidisciplinary Albury Rural Health Society or MARHS, the women will hold a cake stall on Tuesday 13 October at CSU in Albury-Wodonga and the money raised will go directly to the two charities. Any individual or business able to support the CSU students with sponsorship is urged to contact Ms Smith via email. To keep up to date with the journey, follow the CSU students on Instagram @ridingforawheeliegoodcause or search Riding for a Wheelie Good Cause on Facebook.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) speech pathology students are holding a workshop in Albury on Wednesday 7 October to shed some light on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The four Bachelor of Health Science (Speech Pathology) students from the School of Community Health in Albury-Wodonga have organised the workshop for people who have a family member with a disability and the wider community. "We chose the National Disability Insurance Scheme due to families in our work placement environments not having an understanding of what the new Scheme is and how it would influence them," CSU student Ms Tayla Watson said. "We felt it was important to educate those who would be accessing the Scheme in the future, so they feel more confident about what is to come." The workshop will cover what the NDIS is, how it works, identifying someone's needs and the importance of advocacy. It will be held from 5:30 pm on Wednesday 7 October at the Albury Community Health Centre, 596 Smollet Street in Albury.