A breeding, teaching and research program involving the Connemara Pony has been given a healthy start thanks to the generous donation to Charles Sturt University (CSU) by Brisbane businessman, Bill Concannon. His three year old mare, Siobhan, has been delivered to the CSU Equine Centre on the Wagga Wagga Campus. A member of the Connemara Pony Breeders’ Society of Australia, Mr Concannon recently visited CSU to inspect Siobhan who will be joined with a Connemara stallion in 2008. The compact size, good temperament and marketability of the Connemara Pony make the breed ideal for the needs of CSU’s equine science and veterinary science students. In welcoming the new links between the University and the Society, equine science course coordinator, Mr Hunter Doughty, has praised the generosity of Mr Concannon and his support for the University. The Connemara Pony Breeders’ Society is establishing a fund to support research and education through the Charles Sturt Foundation to aid in education of their members and to support equine student scholarships.

Strong demand for a one-day seminar at the National Library of Australia (NLA) on Web 2.0 and its potential for the library community has seen the event’s audio recording placed online. The conference on the potential of the new generation of online technologies attracted interest from across Australia. This led organisers from Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Information Studies to ‘podcast’ the event held recently in Canberra. “The event filled within hours of the registration process going online. With an impressive selection of speakers and demand for the event from across the country, we decided to record the presentations and make the audio available over the web to encourage its use in professional development,” said CSU lecturer Mr Jake Wallis. The audio is available here.

The reported link between the suicide rate amongst farmers and the drought is often based on hearsay, according to Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic, Dr Judith Crockett. The lecturer in social sustainability, from the School of Rural Management on CSU’s Orange Campus says that while the tragedy of suicide must not be downplayed and undoubtedly continues to be of major concern, many of these comments are based on hearsay. However, there is a lack of evidence concerning the actual rate of suicide in rural areas linked to the drought. “What is clear is that an early intervention approach linked to improved referral pathways to care is the most effective way of assisting rural people. The Drought Mental Health Assistance Package, funded by the NSW Government, has resulted in the implementation of a multifaceted approach across rural areas to increase the capacity of individuals, communities and service providers in drought affected areas to deal with mental health issues and to encourage practices that promote mental well-being,” said Dr Crockett. “Extensive evaluation of the program shows very positive results, including helping to reduce the stigma of mental illness in rural communities.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) Chancellor, Mr Lawrence Willett, AO, will officiate at the launch of The Centre for Inland Health (CIH) and the Inland Health Foundation (IHF) on Monday 10 December on the CSU Bathurst Campus. CIH Director Dr Rod Pope explained that the Centre is based on a model that “involves academics from all campuses who participate in research and development in the four CSU faculties – Arts, Business, Education and Science – to serve the shared vision of health for our inland communities. It builds linkages between staff from various CSU Schools, Centres and Groups and links them with service providers, government agencies and community representatives for research and development, rather than operating as a discrete grouping of academics focused on either research or teaching and learning,” Dr Pope said. The Inland Health Foundation is being established to fund the Centre’s work through donations.

Community support is growing for Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Centre for Inland Health initiative, which was established in response to the existing lack of information and realistic solutions to meet the health needs of inland Australian communities. Riverina identity and past president of the Country Women’s Association (CWA) Ms Elaine Armstrong congratulated CSU for the initiative to present the health symposium, Planning Together for the Future and the launch of the Centre on Thursday 29 and Friday 30 December. “The workshops offered are of special interest to women and their families in this region as they cover areas such as lung health, muscle, bone and joint health, life with cancer, health workforce and services, heart health, ageing and health and mental health,” said Ms Armstrong. “Of special interest is the symposium on mental health, because of the extended drought conditions which are causing stress and anxiety for families. Anxiety in younger farmers is another major issue, with statistics showing that men aged 30 to 45 years and living in rural and remote areas, are at risk of mental breakdowns and suicides.”  

Charles Sturt University (CSU) Chancellor, Mr Lawrence Willett, AO, will host a community reception Thursday 6 December to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the establishment of CSU’s Dubbo Campus. The event will be marked by the release of the 10 Year Anniversary booklet and the launch CSU’s Centre for Inland Health (CIH) in Dubbo.  Head of CSU’s Dubbo Campus, Mr Gary Shipp said, “The Chancellor has invited all staff to attend the community reception in recognition of their invaluable, loyal and friendly service to the University and community". Mr Shipp also explained that The Centre for Inland Health is different to most of the University’s other Centres in that “it uses academics from all campuses who are involved in research and development in the four CSU faculties – Arts, Business, Education and Science – to serve the shared vision of health for our inland communities”.

The potential of a new generation of web technologies, collectively known as Web 2.0, has attracted keen interest in a seminar being organised by Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Information Studies and the National Library of Australia (NLA) in Canberra on Tuesday 27 November. About 150 people, representing libraries, cultural institutions as well as commercial organisations, are expected at the seminar entitled, Web 2.0 and its potential for the library community. “This seminar will explore very significant issues in terms of how organisations such as libraries can make interaction online much easier and user-friendly,” said Mr Jake Wallis, a lecturer in CSU’s School of Information Studies. Due to the high level of interest in the event from across Australia, staff from the CSU School of Information Studies plan to broadcast the series of talks via the Internet. The seminar will be held in the NLA theatre in Canberra at 8.45am on Tuesday 27 November.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) education expert believes greater investment in quality early childhood education and care would reduce the need to invest in gaols. Dean of CSU’s Faculty of Education, Professor Toni Downes has welcomed both Coalition and Labor policies which she says are trying to make early childhood education and care more affordable for Australian families. Professor Downes welcomes Labor’s pledge to create an entitlement for all four year olds to have at least 15 hours of early childhood education and care. Professor Downes says “While these initiatives are wonderful, they don’t go far enough. I would argue it should be the entitlement of all three and four year olds in Australia to have at least 15 hours of quality early education. In pushing for this additional investment in early childhood education, I contend that there are significant long term economic and social returns for the country. I firmly believe the more we invest in early childhood education the less we would need to invest in prisons,” Professor Downes said.

On the eve of the 2007 federal election well known pollster, Mr Sol Lebovic will deliver a keynote address to the Australian Media Traditions conference at Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Bathurst Campus on Thursday 22 November. Mr Lebovic is the founder of Newspoll and is The Australian newspaper’s polling consultant for the 2007 federal election campaign. The conference is being hosted by CSU’s School of Communications. The School, in association with radio station 2MCE-FM, is using the latest in web streaming technology to broadcast Mr Lebovic’s address over the internet, as well as the Friday keynote address by Ms Rose Holley from the National Library of Australia (NLA). The live internet broadcasts will be transmitted via the AMT Live! on the conference website. Ms Holley is the manager of the NLA’s newspaper digitisation program, which aims to digitise all Australian newspapers, allowing Australians to share in the country’s wealth of newspaper heritage. Conference convenor Ms Margaret Van Heekeren, from the CSU School of Communications, said the use of web streaming technology “takes the conference out of the conference room and gives the broader public a chance to hear from experts”.