Teams from seven schools in the region gained places at the 2010 Central West RoboCup Junior Challenge robotics competition staged at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Friday 25 June. The coordinator of the event Mr Allen Benter, a PhD student and researcher at the CSU Centre for Research in Complex Systems (CRiCS) in Bathurst, said, “The event was an overwhelming success. The organisers and judges were delighted by the level of enthusiasm of students and their teachers, and with the high standard of entries. This is a growing event that will help motivate future computer scientists and robotics engineers, and we thank all the students and teachers who put in so much effort.” Overall, Dubbo Christian School was most successful, with three of its teams taking the top three places in the Senior Dance category. All schools that won a category will have the opportunity to represent the region at the NSW titles to be held in Sydney on Thursday 26 and Friday 27 August.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) has joined Greater Southern Area Health Service (GSAHS) TAFE NSW Riverina Institute and Wagga Wagga City Council to cut costs through the efficient use of energy in their buildings. CSU is overseeing the training, which is being delivered by the Australian Institute of Air-conditioning, Refrigeration and Heating (AIRAH) after securing a competitive State Government grant of $27 970 to conduct energy efficiency training of its operations and building maintenance staff. “Charles Sturt University hopes the skilling of about 25 staff from the three organisations in energy efficiencies will provide them with greater confidence to make decisions that will ultimately lead to cost savings for their employers,” CSU Energy Manager Mr Edward Maher said. “It is conservatively estimated that energy efficiency improvements of three per cent can be achieved in building services in the organisations within two years of the completion of the training. This represents total carbon savings of 2 000 tonnes a year.” The funding from the NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water is part of the government’s $20 million Energy Efficiency Training Program, established in 2009 to ensure NSW has a well-trained workforce to meet the demands of a green economy. Further information on the Energy Efficiency Training Program is available here.

The 2010 Central West RoboCup Junior Challenge robotics competition will see 153 students from 11 schools across the region build and operate mini robots at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Friday 25 June. The coordinator of the competition, Mr Allen Benter, a PhD student and researcher at the CSU Centre for Research in Complex Systems (CRiCS)  in Bathurst, said, “Charles Sturt University is now the official sponsor of the RoboCup Junior Challenge in the NSW central west following its strong support for the event in recent years. Staff at the University have provided technical advice to students and their teachers, have been judges at previous RoboCup events, and in February this year we held a training workshop on campus in Bathurst for students and teachers. It’s very exciting to now see this developing field so enthusiastically embraced by schools in the region.”

An award-winning website that helps learners recognise the finer points of living plants has helped win international recognition for a Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturer in botany. Dr Geoff Burrows has been awarded the 2010 CE Bessey Award from the Botanical Society of America for his contributions to teaching botany to undergraduate university students, many of whom complete his subjects by distance education. Dr Burrows, who is also a researcher with the University’s Institute for Land, Water and Society, said it was gratifying to receive this recognition from an international society of botanists. “It shows that Charles Sturt University students are receiving a world-class introduction to their education in plant science,” Dr Burrows said. Read more about the website, Supermarket Botany here.

One of Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) newest buildings is up for a national architecture award after it was recognised at the state level last week. The School of Dentistry and Health Sciences building at CSU in Wagga Wagga was named a winner at the Australian Institute of Architects' 2010 NSW Architecture Awards in Sydney on Friday 18 June. The two-storey structure by Brewster Hjorth Architects won the Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture. The building, which is home to the new Dental and Oral Health Clinic, will now go into the Institute’s national awards in October 2010. This is not the first award for the CSU building. In November 2009, builders Joss Construction were named a winner at the Master Builders Association Excellence in Construction Awards. The building, comprising of teaching, research and academic facilities including the clinic and a 20-place simulation laboratory, was officially opened in December 2009. Read more about the award-winning building at CSU in Wagga Wagga here.

A $7.7 million dollar development at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange will see the campus with restructured roads and a brand new Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Science teaching facility constructed for the School of Community Health. With the Bachelor of Physiotherapy course established at the Orange Campus this year, CSU will continue its development of the campus with a new purpose-built facility including academic offices, and simulated health spaces such as a rehabilitation gym and practice clinic. Head of the School of Community Health, Associate Professor Julia Coyle says, “Both the students and academics are very excited about the construction beginning in September, and the introduction of the Bachelor of Health and Rehabilitation Science degree which starts in Orange in March 2011.  The new Health Rehabilitation students will learn in the new facility alongside the Physiotherapy students.”

A joint project between Charles Sturt University (CSU), TAFE NSW - Western Institute, TAFE NSW Riverina Institute, and the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education is set to make training easier for future early childhood educators who live in regional Australia. The Early Childhood Education Workforce Capacity Project (ECEWC) aims to build workforce capacity in early childhood education throughout inland and Indigenous areas in NSW and the Northern Territory. “The aim is to assist the aspirations and needs of regional communities, and individual practitioners in the Early Childhood Education field,” said project manager and CSU lecturer in the School of Teacher Education, Ms Alison Lord. “We can do this by providing an opportunity for students, both recent school leavers and mature age, a means to study at home supported by the provision of Mentors and Community Facilitators, without the need to relocate to another town or city, or leave employment in order to undertake university study,” Community Orientation Professional Development Days will be held over the next two weekends in Griffiths and Parkes giving the 42 students enrolled in the project the support they need to continue their studies.

The challenging issue of the sexualisation of girls will the subject of discussion at a public lecture in Griffith on Wednesday 23 June. Lecturer in Philosophy and Ethics at Charles Sturt University (CSU) Dr Emma Rush will give an overview of what researchers and experts have to say about the risks associated with the sexualisation of girls and explain the government’s response. Dr Rush will also identify resources for parents and professionals who work with girls. “As a society we must strive for the development of healthy and happy girls,” Dr Rush said. “Yet we are now seeing miniature celebrity fashion magazines, lip gloss and padded bras being sold for everyday use by girls from the age of eight. The increasing pressure on girls to meet very narrow appearance ideals at younger and younger ages is of significant concern to experts in child health and welfare.” The free lecture will be held from 6pm in the Burley Griffin Room, Griffith Regional Theatre in Neville Place, Griffith on Wednesday 23 June. CSU wine and cheese will be served after the lecture.

Two Charles Sturt University (CSU) Faculty of Arts graduates are finalists in the 2010 Australia China Alumni Awards. At a reception in the Australian pavilion at Shanghai Expo on Tuesday 25 May, Ms Kara Jenkinson, a disaster preparedness delegate for the Australian Red Cross, was announced as a finalist in the Australian Education International Young Australian Alumni of the Year for the second year in a row, while Ms Anthea Webb, director of the United Nations World Food Program in China, was announced asa finalist for the Women in Leadership award. Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Professor Anthony Cahalan said, “The fact we have two graduates listed as finalists in these internationally recognised awards is testament to the high quality degrees we offer at Charles Sturt University.” The winners will be announced at a gala dinner in Shanghai on Saturday 10 July.