The Charles Sturt University (CSU) community was saddened to hear of the recent death of Mrs Sheila Swain, AM. Mrs Swain was first appointed to the Council of Mitchell College of Advanced Education, a predecessor institution of CSU, in 1981.  She became Deputy Chair in 1984 and was Chair from 1986 to 1988. The building housing the School of Nursing and Midwifery on the University’s Bathurst Campus was named after Mrs Swain in 2000. Mrs Swain was a councillor on Hunters Hill Municipal Council in Sydney from 1971 to 1991, becoming the first woman elected mayor of the suburb in 1980-82 and was re-elected in 1987-89. She was also active in the Australian Local Government Women's Association - as treasurer, secretary, president of the NSW branch and later national president. In 1986 Mrs Swain was named Outstanding Woman of the Year by the Australian Federation of Business and Professional Women, and in 1987 was appointed a member of the Order of Australia. In 1989 she established and funded four scholarships for female students at CSU suffering financial hardship.

Two Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturers were the first Australian academics to recently visit Vladivostok in far eastern Russia to establish contacts and foster collaboration with the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) and the Far Eastern National University (FENU). Mr Errol Chopping and Dr David Tien, from the CSU School of Accounting and Computer Sciences at Bathurst, held seminars and meetings with key personnel at RAS and FENU to discuss and promote shared project development, collaborative research, and exchange programs for staff and students. Mr Chopping said, “CSU computer science staff have research interests which complement those of the RAS, especially in the use of computer games technology. We detected growing interest to work with Australian universities, government organisations and industry. We even have similar challenges in travel and communications due to our vast and remote locations. A joint conference with RAS is planned for next year.”

With parents aware of the importance of life skills for children, Charles Sturt University (CSU) is offering its first Equine School to be held in the NSW school holidays in April. CSU will also help school students contemplating a career in the horse industry with a tailored holiday course in horse riding. “The school is also ideal for young or green horses to enable their owners to provide valuable exposure away from familiar surroundings, with horses given sound basics to go on with at home,” course coordinator Ms Cheryl Gander said. “Sharing life with horses is a wonderful tool in learning important life skills, especially for younger children and teenagers. Horses can teach things like responsibility, humility and patience – all important in everyday life.” The school will be run by experienced instructors in a safe, controlled environment at the CSU Equine Centre at Orange.

A new Charles Sturt University (CSU) course starting in 2010 could see music teachers educated through regional music conservatoriums around Australia. The new CSU Associate Degree in Music Education is aimed at the teaching of an instrument. The brainchild of CSU and Orange Regional Conservatorium Director Mr Graham Sattler, the two year full-time course at CSU at Bathurst, or four years part-time by distance education, concentrates on studies into educational, curriculum, teaching and professional issues. “The ability to deliver this course by distance education makes it very accessible,” says Christopher Klopper, a music lecturer with CSU’s School of Teacher Education. “It combines theory and practice in an exciting approach that will build the confidence of both aspiring and practicing music teachers.”

A leading Australian theologian will examine the relationship between Christianity and Islam when he delivers a public lecture at Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst on Tuesday 14 April as part of the University’s 20th anniversary celebrations. Reverend Professor James Haire, AM, whose address will draw on his extensive international and inter-faith experience, is Professor of Theology at CSU, Executive Director of the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture and Director of CSU's Public and Contextual Theology Research Centre, based in Canberra. “I will look at the inter-relationships of Christianity and Islam in global perspective, and at the implications for Australia. I will also draw on personal experience in inter-faith dialogue and negotiations,” Reverend Professor Haire said. The lecture will start at 6.30pm on 14 April in the James Hardie Room, Centre for Professional Development, at CSU Bathurst Campus.

The Federal Government has finally got the plan right for the National Broadband Network (NBN) according to Charles Sturt University (CSU) adjunct researcher Mr Peter Adams. Mr Adams, who has studied household broadband adoption for the past seven years, said today's announcement by the Rudd Government that it would form a public-private partnership to build the NBN is the best outcome from what has been an issue poorly managed by successive governments."Having the Commonwealth control the building of such important national infrastructure will ultimately achieve the best outcome for broadband users by ensuring there is clear separation between the provider of the cables and the commercial companies who compete to service consumers.” The researcher from CSU's Centre for Research in Complex Systems warned the Rudd Government now has a big job: it will manage the building of the network, and needs to convince households they will be better off under the proposed NBN. "Research conducted at CSU in 2008 showed householders are not convinced they should spend their income on higher speed broadband.  Clear information must be provided to consumers about the benefits of NBN services."

Key problems facing Australian horticultural production from climate change have been well documented. In a seminar at the National Wine and Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) at CSU at Wagga Wagga, researcher Dr Andrew Hall will focus on the impacts for the Australian wine industry.  “Reduced availability of irrigation water, increased pests and diseases, particularly fruit fly, reduction in grape quality and value, and changes to the profitability of other crops are factors that will impact the industry,” said Dr Hall. A NWGIC research fellow, Dr Andrew Hall will present the seminar, Effect of potential climate change on Australian wine-grape growing conditions on Wednesday 15 April.  Current work at the NWGIC involves improving temperature index forecasts for the wine industry. This is being done through improving the estimation of growing season start dates, forecasting temperature index ranges and extreme heat events, and determining which climate models best fit individual wine regions.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) has already reached its 2015 target for water savings having slashed its water use by over 40 per cent in the past two years. These figures were highlighted in the 2008 CSU Environmental Scorecard recently released by the University. “This is a fantastic effort across the whole University, all the more important as most of these campuses are or have been in drought declared areas across NSW,” said William Adlong, Manager of CSU’s sustainability office, CSU Green. “Water usage at CSU in 2008 decreased by 16 per cent.” Energy use has decreased by eight per cent since 2006, with a slight increase by 1.5 percent during 2008. “However, there has been an increase in the area of buildings heated and cooled as CSU continued its extensive building program in 2007 and 2008,” said CSU Energy Manager Edward Maher. CSU is also addressing the carbon emissions caused by its staff travelling in cars and aircraft by replacing its large petrol cars with hybrid, diesel and small four cylinder cars in 2009.

Education, industrial relations and a low carbon future is the topic of a public lecture to be presented by Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) President Sharan Burrow at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury on Thursday 23 April. Ms Burrow says Australian education institutions are well placed to deepen workforce planning and frame skills development to meet the challenges facing Australia. "We must position ourselves to ensure we have the education and skills to capture a half trillion dollar share of a three trillion dollar global green industry. Our universities and colleges, businesses and unions, must drive demand for research and development and for an intensity of skills effort like never before, and government must stand ready to partner these plans.  Our workplaces must meet the industrial challenges and changes this new economy requires," Ms Burrow said. The second annual Bob Meyenn Education Lecture will commence at 7.30pm in the Nowik Auditorium, CSU Albury City site, Guinea St, Albury.