Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) engagement with local communities is being demonstrated in Bathurst where third-year CSU marketing students are presenting their ideas to several Bathurst businesses this month. The most challenging project is the Royal Bathurst Show which is changing dates for the first time in over 120 years and hoping to attract a younger crowd. “I see regional engagement as a really important part of the University,” said Andrew Mashman from CSU’s School of Marketing and Management. “The Show is the biggest community event in the Bathurst calendar and the date change is very important. In doing this project, the students get to understand the stakeholders in the Bathurst community much better.” At the same time, students in Internet Marketing are investigating the opportunities for several local businesses to start or grow their internet marketing strategies. Bachelor of Business (Marketing) graduate David Gibson says his involvement in last year’s project helped land him a job in sales and marketing co-ordination. His advice to students this year? “Definitely get involved as much as you can and include it in your resume. It does set you apart from other university graduates.”

Improving athlete’s performances and recovery times could be as simple as wearing compression garments or ‘Skins’, according to Dr Rob Duffield, lecturer in the School of Human Movement at Charles Sturt University (CSU). With Johann Edge, a researcher at Massey University in New Zealand, he is looking at what effect Skins have if worn during and after hard training sessions such as simulating an actual rugby game. If Skins reduce muscle damage, it is possible performance will improve. Athletes have been using Skins based on anecdotal evidence for some time and Dr Duffield says it is common for science to play catch-up with trends set by the sporting fraternity. “Athletes are always looking for an edge and they’ll use anything even if they only perceive that it makes them perform and feel better. The science then either proves or disproves the theory.” Although Dr Duffield is still awaiting final data to come in there is already considerable interest in his research. “We start testing the compression garments for Cricket Australia this week. If there is a performance benefit, we’ll look more in depth to see if there’s a psychological component or whether there are physiological changes occurring as a result of wearing Skins,” Dr Duffield said.

A young woman scientist from Charles Sturt University (CSU) has been selected from a worldwide pool of outstanding students in the field of chemistry to attend the 56th Meeting of Nobel Laureates in Germany next month (25-30 June). Suzy McDonald, a CSU Doctoral student, will mingle with 24 Laureates and 500 like-minded students for five days. Seven Australians were chosen by the Australian Academy of Science according to strict criteria such as an excellent graduation record, outstanding research and teaching experience and a strong commitment to a principal field of study. “It’s not very often you get to meet Nobel Laureates,” said Suzy McDonald whose research on carbon in the Murrumbidgee River is adding to the scientific knowledge of environmental processes. She is looking forward to meeting Laureate Paul J. Crutzen, who contributed to the realisation that the earth's protective ozone layer is threatened by human activity. Ms McDonald says when she finishes her PhD she would like to continue her work on environmental research and water quality issues.

Defining the shape of practical and clinical education to help prepare the professionals of tomorrow was the subject of recent discussions for Charles Sturt University (CSU) staff. With 85 per cent of the University’s undergraduate courses including practicum or clinical requirements, CSU is a leader in providing practical professional education in Australia. Academic and general staff across CSU’s campuses discussed the possible shape of a proposed University-wide institute for clinical and practicum-based education. Speakers at the forum on the Albury-Wodonga Campus examined how the institute could support the administration and funding of clinical practice, internships and practicums as well as assisting research into practical education. The forum meeting was hosted by the CSU Professional Experience Network (PEN) and recommendations from the forum were forwarded to the University’s senior management.

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic hopes the latest research into the youth labour market will put to rest the mistaken belief that young Australians are prone to unemployment and there is a need for drastic action and policy change to avoid youth joblessness. Associate Professor Erica Smith from CSU’s Faculty of Education said a recent study released by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) challenges reports of a “crisis” in the youth labour market and supports her own national research conducted over the past eight years. “Young people are not deficient or victims when it comes to entering the labour market. My studies and now other national research shows that they can confidently navigate the transition from school to work,” said Professor Smith. “The risks of the myth that young people are disadvantaged when entering the job market from school is that the school curriculum is constantly being challenged and sometimes amended to mould young people when the changes are unnecessary,” said the vocational education and training specialist.

As Australia’s population ages, a Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic is warning that Australia is not ready or prepared for the impending changes. Rhonda Shaw from the CSU School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies wants to establish a community-based group to think about what is happening in older people’s lives now and in the future. The Ageing Issues Interest Group (AIIG) would then identify these issues, and consider ways of preventing, or at least decreasing, the impact on older people’s lives. “They could be health, public transport or social isolation issues. A big problem with older people, especially those who live on their own, is malnutrition,” said the CSU associate lecturer. Ms Shaw is concentrating on the central western city of Bathurst, but says if the AIIG is successful, it could branch out into other areas. She is hoping that the Group will attract interest from those who work with the aged, researchers interested in ageing issues, aged carers, and of course, older people themselves.

“Water is life and central to Charles Sturt University’s (CSU’s) research plan for the future,” said Professor Paul Burnett, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Research and Graduate Training as he turned on the tap last Friday (19 May) to commission CSU’s new Irrigation and Horticulture Research and Demonstration Area. The new facility at CSU’s Wagga Wagga Campus will be used for research on irrigation systems and testing their performance on a field scale with all the required monitoring facilities. Before the area was developed there was no facility available at CSU and most irrigated agriculture research had to be done on farmer’s fields with limited control environments. Professor Paul Burnett said it was appropriate to be commissioning the new research facility during Water Week at CSU which brought together key international delegates to develop a cooperative approach to agriculture and water management. “CSU is enriched by sharing research projects and infrastructure and this new facility will boost CSU’s competitiveness in bidding for specialist research projects and funding on irrigated crops,” Professor Burnett said. The area will also be used for research projects by students in the School of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences. Richard Burbury, 19, of Tasmania, a first-year student in CSU’s Bachelor of Irrigation Science degree, was presented with the $10,000 three-year Irrigation Initiative Scholarship to pursue his studies in irrigation.

The Nine Television Network has requested its annual scholarship to a Charles Sturt University (CSU) communications student be renamed the Richard Carleton Memorial Scholarship. The veteran Nine Network journalist died while covering the rescue of the Beaconsfield gold miners in Tasmania. “One of the attributes that the School of Communication journalism course instils in its students is the need to ask the hard questions and to probe beyond the obvious facts of news,” said the Head of the CSU School of Communication, Associate Professor Tom Watson. “Richard Carleton was a master of this skill and unlocked many major stories, so the School welcomes the decision by Channel Nine to rename its scholarship for journalism students after one of Australia’s leading investigative journalists. It further cements a long and very productive relationship between Channel Nine and the School of Communication,” Associate Professor Watson said.  

A senior NSW ambulance officer and a member of the Beaconsfield rescue team believes an “amazing strength of mind” help keep the two trapped gold miners alive for a fortnight, almost one kilometre underground. Dominic Morgan, a Superintendent with the Ambulance Service of NSW, was one of six members of the Service’s Special Casualty Access Team (SCAT) to work in the large rescue effort in Tasmania’s northeast. Working in 12 hour shifts with his SCAT colleagues, the Charles Sturt University (CSU) graduate was mainly responsible for maintaining the mental health of Todd Russell and Brant Webb. Communicating through an 87 millimetre PVC pipe, Superintendent Morgan said his team had to “buoy their spirits” and keep the miners “relaxed and confident as possible”. He said the mine rescue posed a “whole new set of challenges” from normal paramedic work due to its sustained nature. The ambulance officer reflected that the two trapped miners showed how “strong the human mind can be” and displayed “incredible support for each other”.  CSU was the first university to offer pre-hospital care education in Australia with graduates employed as ambulance officers in paramedic and emergency care settings in Australia and overseas.