A national award promoting religious harmony and acceptance within Australian society has been bestowed on Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturer in theology, Associate Professor Clive Pearson. The principal of the United Theological College (UTC) in Sydney, within the CSU School of Theology, received an Australian Affinity Award in September. The award recognised Professor Pearson’s significant contributions in the study of religion, interfaith and intercultural dialogue, and the ‘facilitating' by CSU in this dialogue. Associate Professor Pearson was particularly recognised for his work on the public theology of issues of diversity in Sydney, including analysis of the riots in the Sydney suburb of Cronulla in December 2005. “The United Theological College has been working with Affinity and Sydney’s Islamic community firstly out of concern for the neighbour, for the stranger in our midst and a concern for social cohesion,” said Associate Professor Pearson. “We have attended and presented at each other's conferences because we believe that it is important for a Christian theology to be done these days in the presence of the religious other as well as the secular.”

A new information technology (IT) course to be offered by Charles Sturt University (CSU) at Bathurst will be launched on Friday 7 November by the Hon. Phillip Costa, MP, NSW Minister for Water, Rural Affairs and Regional Development. The Bachelor of Information Technology (Business Services) degree has been developed by CSU and international computer firm IBM to keep pace with rapidly evolving industry needs and will provide skilled IT professionals for a range of industries. Head of the CSU School of Accounting and Computer Science, Associate Professor Ross Wilson, said, “The degree, which offers a mix of technical and business aspects that reflects what industry is looking for, will be offered from the start of 2009 and will incorporate flexible delivery to facilitate concurrent work experience. All 22 students accepted into the new course will be fully supported by scholarships funded by industry partners IBM, Country Energy and the NSW Department of Lands.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) lecturer in management communication Mrs Zelma Bone joined representatives from online career advisory website Career Central Australia on a tour of the NSW Central West last week. “We did a three-day road trip with Career Central visiting schools in Condobolin, Parkes, Forbes, Red Bend, Dubbo, Molong, Canowindra, Cowra and Blayney,” Mrs Bone said. CSU became a sponsor of Career Central Australia last year enabling 2 500 students at thirteen schools in western and central western NSW to become members for a greatly subsidised fee. “By visiting these schools and others, we can promote the benefits of the website which gives young regional people a greater scope of information about possible careers.” See the Careeer Central website here.

The Charles Sturt University (CSU) 2007 Shiraz has been nominated for the prestigious Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy at the 2008 Royal Melbourne Wine Show, Australia largest wine show. Fifteen wines were selected in October by a panel of international and national judges. The award for the best red wine of the 2007 vintage is one of the most sought after trophies of the 21 awards available at the show. The CSU 2007 Shiraz is produced with grapes from the University’s vineyard in Orange and is the only NSW wine to be nominated for this year’s Trophy. The wine has already been awarded bronze medals at the Orange Wine Show in October and the Riverina Wine Show in September. CSU Shiraz 2007 will be released at the University’s Cellar Door at Wagga Wagga in mid-November. The winner of the Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy will be announced at the Royal Melbourne Wine Show presentation dinner on Thursday 13 November at the Hilton on the Park in Melbourne.

Five groups of final year marketing students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) will deliver marketing plans to representatives of the Royal Australian Mint at a presentation at the Bathurst Campus on Thursday 6 November. Lecturer in marketing at the School of Marketing and Management, Mr Andrew Mashman, explained that following an invitation from Dr Felicity Mullens, Marketing Manager of the Royal Australian Mint, his class of strategic marketing management students travelled to Canberra to inspect the Mint and be briefed about Australia’s diminishing use of coin-based currency, the Mint’s core business. After returning, the students worked in groups for eight weeks to explore marketing strategies and research opportunities the Mint could consider. “Each group will deliver a 20-minute presentation to communicate how they would ensure the longevity of Australia’s premium minting facility,” Mr Mashman said. “The students feel the pressure to perform because of the client’s involvement, and as graduating students they know this will be an important step in their transition into the workforce in 2009.”

Entries in a short film competition sponsored by the Charles Sturt University (CSU) School of Marketing and Management will be screened on Wednesday evening, 12 November, at the CSU at Bathurst. The CSU Flix - M&M Short Film Awards focus on the topic ‘Life as a business student with the CSU School of Marketing and Management’. There are three prizes valued at $2 000 for the winners, chosen from three categories which focus on the experience of students enrolled in distance education, on campus or postgraduate studies. The short film entries will be used on CSU websites for prospective students wanting an insight into student life. Admission on the night is by donation to Headspace, a charity for young people with mental health problems in Bathurst.

The tapping sound of typing is replacing the rustle of paper and scratching of pens across lecture theatres in regional Australia as students purchase laptop computers though Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) rebate scheme. CSU is offering a $300 rebate to on campus undergraduate students who purchase a laptop for their studies. Lecturers welcome the rebate scheme. Head of CSU at Dubbo, Mr Gary Shipp, said “The scheme is designed to encourage and assist students make the most of accessing university online systems when visiting and studying on campus. Distance students can take advantage of the scheme when required to attend compulsory residential schools on campus. I hope it will make note taking and assessment writing easier for our students."

An initial survey of NSW households by a Charles Sturt University researcher has found most householders are looking at ways to become more energy efficient by using less electricity. However, while environmental concern is one reason people aim to reduce their usage, according to CSU postgraduate student Ms Jodie Kleinschafer it is the “larger than expected electricity bill” that is the more immediate motivator. “When ‘average’ householders get larger than expected electricity bills, they start to look for ways to reduce the electricity they use,” said Mrs Kleinschafer, who is undertaking a three year, $100 000 research project funded by Country Energy. So far, Mrs Kleinschafer has surveyed 80 households, and in conjunction with Country Energy will survey a further 4 000 regional NSW households in the next two months. She said the findings of her research would enable electricity retailers to manage increasing electricity demand in a way that still satisfies the needs of residential electricity consumers.

Increasing awareness of the social development needs of the Asia-Pacific region is one of the aims of an international conference being co-organised by Associate Professor Manohar Pawar from Charles Sturt University (CSU). The conference, which will be held in Nepal from Tuesday 25 to Friday 28 November, is held biennially by the International Consortium for Social Development (ICSD). Professor Pawar, from the CSU Institute for Land, Water and Society, is president of the ICSD Asia-Pacific branch. “This conference, with its themes of social development, transition and local partnerships, is being held at a time of international financial uncertainty,” said Professor Pawar. “Some world leaders have responded by pleading for global partnership and cooperation to deal with the financial crisis, though the whole world may not be responsible for such a crisis. Similar to the financial crisis, the world is experiencing severe and intensive crises such as poverty and hunger, climate change, disasters and drought, war and violence, and mass displacement of people. It is also timely to call for global partnership and cooperation to attack these crises.”