The world’s leading cattle producing nations visited Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Veterinary Science Facilities as part of the 5 Nations Beef Conference being held this week. International delegates from the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and Argentina viewed CSU’s Veterinary Science facilities as part of their focus on the future of the cattle industry. The visit has further strengthened links between CSU and the Cattle Council of Australia. Director of Veterinary Science, Professor Kym Abbott said the Veterinary Pre-Clinical Centre gave the 30 delegates an insight into future global animal health management. “Cattle health is high on our agenda at CSU, because it is central to veterinary biosecurity and herd management as well as research into current and potential threats to Australia’s livestock industries.” Professor Abbott said it was an honour for CSU to be able to showcase “to leading cattle specialists from around the world what we are doing in Veterinary Science”. The Cattle Council of Australia will return to the University for the official opening of the new “state of the art” cattle yards and CSU Veterinary Science Foundation Dinner on Saturday 28 October. Cattle Council Executive Director, David Inall will be guest speaker at the Dinner.

“I feel very confident in promoting the University as a great place to work.” Karen Kime is Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) new Indigenous Employment Coordinator. Although she only started in the position in June, already she has held cross cultural training workshops and Indigenous staff forums. “The workshops were about the different communication styles that many of our people have. Things such as eye contact, and women and men’s 'business', are sensitive issues. Silences are often used to show respect. Body language is very different. The forums meanwhile are a fantastic way for our people to be able to get together, to network, learn University processes, and to get some training which is specifically targeted for their needs.” Next up will be the introduction of pathways between TAFE, schools and CSU and the development of a mentoring scheme “to encourage people to see CSU as a potential and relevant employer - where one could have a career. In addition, our people contribute to an interesting and dynamic workforce; one that reflects the cultural makeup of the region it serves.”

Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) resident poet, David Gilbey, will spend five months on a “journey of discovery” as part of his study leave to complete his first full volume of poetry. “There is an ancient connection between travelling and writing,” says David, who is Senior Lecturer in Literature and Creative Writing at CSU’s Wagga Wagga Campus and the founding president of Wagga Wagga Writers Writers group. David begins his international sojourn next week in Paris and the Loire Valley in France before travelling to the University of Montana, USA, where he will be featured at the Montana Festival of the Book in late September. He will also read his poetry at seminars in Wales, Ireland, the Robert Menzies Centre in the UK, Shanghai in China and at Sendai in northern Japan, where David was visiting Professor of English at Miyagi Gakuin Women’s College in 2000.

Videoconferencing will be a significant component of teaching in the future according to Charles Sturt University (CSU) mathematics lecturer Michael Kemp who spoke at a public seminar today about the challenges facing lecturers who are not always teaching in the same room as their students. “As the world evolves into a smaller place with email and videoconferencing becoming an everyday occurrence, Australia’s largest regional university CSU has trained their academics to use the latest technology and present lectures to students throughout NSW and across the country.” Having taught mathematics via videoconferences and forums during the past semester at CSU, Mr Kemp looked at his practices through a survey with students to present a public seminar on lessons learnt titled Lessons Learned About Remote Teaching.

Jane Caldwell, a Charles Sturt University (CSU) PhD candidate enrolled through the School of Clinical Sciences, has been awarded a Certificate of Merit at the 4th Annual Victorian Government State Nursing Excellence Awards. Her supervisors, Dr Elaine Dietsch and Dr Sandi Mackey, are full of praise for Jane’s work. “It is a very, very prestigious award. Jane’s PhD thesis is looking at parenting strengths in vulnerable families, so she is doing it from a positive perspective. In regard to the two thousand dollars she won, she said ‘that will buy heaps of things for the families I visit’. She is highly esteemed by colleagues as well as the families she works with,” said Dr Dietsch. Jane Caldwell describes those families as “great people. They are fabulous families. They don’t have a lot, they don’t have material things but they are rich people in what they give back.”

“Lazarus with a triple bypass”. The year was 1989, and John Howard had just lost the Opposition leadership. One reporter at the media conference asked him if he felt like a “political corpse”, another if he thought he could ever regain the leadership. How did John Howard go from that moment in political time, to today marking his tenth year in office with four straight election wins, making him Australia’s second-longest serving Prime Minister? Dr Wayne Errington (left), Lecturer in the School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies at Charles Sturt University (CSU) is currently writing a biography about John Howard, and will present a paper to a weekend conference looking at Mr Howard’s skill as a politician and his refusal to succumb to political rejection. “He’s grown as a politician, he’s a much more calm person than he was 10 or 15 years ago, he’s much more measured in his policies, he’s prepared to compromise to get things through the senate or to mollify public opinion, and that’s a recipe for a much more successful conservative politician.” Dr Errington’s paper also examines all the elements that have led to John Howard’s remarkable four election wins.

The highly regarded Charles Sturt University (CSU) Leadership Development for Women (LDW) conference is being held over two days on Monday 21 and Tuesday November 22 2016 in Wagga Wagga.More than 80 women are expected to attend with this year's theme being 'Leading with Integrity'.CSU LDW Steering Committee Chair Associate Professor Rosemary Black said the conference couldn't come at a more appropriate time."Issues of equity in universities cannot be seen in isolation from the changes in governance and operation of universities in the past three decades with all staff experiencing changes," Associate Professor Black said."The rapid changes towards an entrepreneurial climate and market orientation of universities that focuses on measurable and marketable consumer satisfaction, performance outcomes of students and staff and international rankings have brought changes in the nature of employment and employment conditions."If the UK experience is any indication it's likely that these new labour regimes will be highly gendered, seriously disadvantaging women in areas such as contracts, conditions, promotions and pay."Associate Professor Black added that these changes and the changes to come in universities, mean that an ongoing focus on gender equity is needed as each new change brings fresh equity challenges."While there's no one policy change or magic bullet that can be nominated to 'fix' gender inequity, the work and initiatives of the Leadership Development for Women Committee such as the conference and the Leadership Development for Women Program are important and effective ways of supporting and developing leadership among all women within Charles Sturt University, as well encouraging a cultural change within the organisation."Keynote speaker at the conference is Dr Leslie Cannold who is an educator and trainer in inspirational leadership, gender equity and respectful relationships.Dr Cannold is an award-winning columnist and is often described as one of Australia's leading public thinkers.She's been named alongside Professor Peter Singer, Professor Gustav Nossal and Inga Clendinnen as one of Australia's top 20 public intellectuals and was named by the Power Index as among the Top Ten most influential thinkers.Other speakers include economist and Chair of Regional Development Australia - Riverina, Ms Diana Gibbs along with media commentator and comedian Ms George McEncroe who is the guest speaker at the conference dinner on Monday night.Described by friends as "Geraldine Doogue meets Roseanne Barr", Ms McEncroe has had an interesting life journey from which she draws her viewpoints, including working for a War Crimes Tribunal, caring for teenage boys with muscular dystrophy, being a mother of four, and teaching English in Istanbul.Over two days, conference delegates will examine how to build a network; establish stories in supporting and developing female staff; consider leading strategically in an ethical way and influencing with integrity.

A group of 21 Charles Sturt University (CSU) MBA students has received a first hand account of the European business environment through a joint program with the University of Applied Sciences, Berne , in . Through a combination of classes taught by academics and business practitioners, as well as visits to world leading organisations in and , the subject Doing Business in Europe offers MBA students at the University the opportunity to experience the challenges and practicalities of conducting business in Europe. The two-week trip to in August included visits to the headquarters of Roche Pharmaceuticals, Credit Suisse, and Daimler Chrysler. “It is vital that MBA programs include the opportunity for students to experience the dynamics of other industries, and an insight into other cultures,” said CSU’s Professor Mark Farrell. 

A new journal to promote excellence in teaching, foster research and contribute to ongoing development of education of accounting professionals has been unveiled by Charles Sturt University (CSU). The bi-annual Australian Journal of Accounting Education (AJAE) is published by the University’s (CSU) Faculty of Commerce with sponsorship from CPA Australia. “There are only three other journals focusing in this area and they are based in the USA and UK,” said Editor and CSU senior lecturer Jenny Kent. “As the first journal of its kind in Australia-Asian region, this publication provides an important publishing opportunity for accounting academics interested in researching the scholarship of learning and teaching in accounting,” she added.