This year’s National Drama Australia Conference had more drama than usual for Associate Professor Dr John Carroll, who was named the recipient of the 2006 Drama Australia Award for Excellence in Drama Education. The Charles Sturt University (CSU) Associate Professor in Communication Research also launched a new book at the Turning The Tides conference which addressed such issues as online drama, digital performance and drama learning. Professor Carroll says Real Players? coauthored with David Cameron of CSU and Michael Anderson of the University of Sydney is “aimed at drama educators, secondary teachers and the university community, as well as a broader group of people who are interested in what’s happening in new technology and performance. It covers the shift that is going on in how young people are relating to new media, and how they are creatively using alternative channels of information.”

Veterinary issues concerning the Australian cattle industry including trade risks and maintaining export markets in light of animal disease and public health threats will be the focus of a speech by Australian Cattle Council Executive Director Mr David Inall. Mr Inall will join former Chief Veterinary Officer of Australia Dr Gardner Murray in addressing industry representatives and regional practitioners at the inaugural Charles Sturt Veterinary Foundation Dinner on Saturday 28 October in Wagga Wagga.  The Charles Sturt University (CSU) veterinary program’s multi-million dollar capital works projects will be a feature discussion topic at the dinner, with plans currently underway for a Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory to support livestock producers and veterinarians in the region, as well as facilitate training for veterinary undergraduate and postgraduate students in diagnostic procedures. “The dinner provides an opportunity to discuss the course, its particular characteristics and its educational and research directions with the veterinary community and build the networks crucial to ensuring the success of the program and our graduates,” says CSU’s Director of Veterinary Science Professor Kym Abbott. The dinner will be held in 6pm Boorooma Auditorium, CSU Wagga Wagga Campus.

World Health Organisation predictions of a 60 per cent increase in Type 2 Diabetes between 1995 and 2030 have been challenged by a new study from Ontario. Researchers there have found a 69 per cent increase in the rate of the disease between 1995 and 2005 - far greater than previous projections for Canada. The authors of the new research say this could have devastating consequences worldwide. Professor Patrick Ball from Charles Sturt University’s School of Biomedical Sciences isn’t surprised. "The clear evidence is that we are losing the battle. There are so many different facets to the problem including lack of exercise and modern diets packed with fats and sugar. People are starting to accept diabetes as a normal part of the ageing process. I believe it is a worse health problem than tobacco."

A new initiative within the NSW Ambulance Service (NSWAS) has seen 22 Charles Sturt University (CSU) Paramedic graduates begin a one-year internship. Peter O'Meara, Associate Professor in CSU’s School of Public Health said previously the CSU graduates had to train all over again within the NSWAS three-year entry program. “This recognises our students’ skills and knowledge and it means they get out into practice more quickly. It is excellent for CSU and we hope to see it expanded in the future, with the ultimate aim of all entry into the NSWAS being by university degree.” Professor O’Meara explained that other states have phased out their own training programs altogether in favour of university graduates. And, he added: “We understand anecdotally that the students are doing very, very well and have made quite an impression.”

Are we riding the rails of success or running off the track? That answer could be found at The Future Frameworks for Regional Rail symposium, hosted by the Charles Sturt University (CSU) and the Railway Technical Society of Australasia (RTSA). To be held on Thursday 1 February 2007 at the CSU Wagga Wagga Campus, the symposium will examine what can be done to rejuvenate regional rail transport. CSU’s Associate Professor Ian Gray and speakers from Canada and across Australia will address representatives of the rail industry, regional communities, industry and government, sharing ideas on how to keep rail networks viable and on track in regional areas. CSU’s Professor Ian Gray says, “trains offer a huge carrying capacity, trucks offer flexibility, so it makes sense to combine the benefits of both”. Professor Gray believes, “rail could make a comeback by combining with road transport to create an integrated system, if planning and management was done at a regional level”.

“This course will help solve the issues surrounding the rural health crisis,” says Charles Sturt University (CSU) Bachelor of Clinical Sciences course coordinator Dr Deborah Burton. Dr Burton is looking forward to the first week of university study on Monday 26 February when the Clinical Sciences course begins. The Bachelor of Clinical Science is offered from the Orange Campus of CSU and has been established in collaboration with the University of Sydney's Faculty of Dentistry and Faculty of Medicine. “It’s the only course of its kind that provides a specific education pathway from the undergraduate CSU degree into the University of Sydney graduate entry programs for eligible graduates.” The Bachelor of Clinical Science has been developed with curriculum specifically designed to meet the expectations of graduate entry dentistry, medicine and other health programs across Australia. Places are still available for 2007 enrolments. For more information contact CSU on 1800 334 733 or visit www.csu.edu.au 

The problem of child sex tourism will be discussed at a workshop at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury on Monday 12 February. “The purpose of the workshop is to achieve some consensus on what Australia is doing to respond to this problem in the Asia-Pacific region, and how strategies and responses can be better focused and improved”, said CSU lecturer in tourism and workshop convenor Dr Sallie Yea. Invited speakers include representatives from the Australian Federal Police, AusAID, Australian Institute of Criminology, University of Technology Sydney, ChildWise, and CSU. The workshop will be held in the Administration Building boardroom at the CSU Thurgoona Campus in Albury between 9.30 am - 4.30 pm. The morning sessions of the workshop will be open to CSU staff and the general public, at a cost of $20 to cover catering, but places are limited. For more information please contact Dr Sallie Yea, Lecturer in the School of Business and Information Technology, on 0419 530 058 or (02) 6051 9921.

Ever wonder where those fabulous hat creations that adorn the heads of fashion leaders and socialites come from? Some of the world’s best known milliners gather at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Convention Centre, Wagga Wagga this weekend for the 2007 International Millinery Forum ‘Brimming With Success’. Hosted by the CSU’s Community Education Unit, over 130 milliners from Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Europe, Africa and America will attend. They will display their stunning collection of hats and share valuable millinery skills and knowledge during a series of workshops. The forum begins on Saturday 3 February 2007 and concludes on Thursday February 8 2007. CSU Community Education Manager Larry Buete says, “The forum has gained international attention with many delegates and tutors attending from all parts of the globe and across the nation". Buete says, “the ripple effect of this forum will be felt in the fashion industry and across the nation for the next 12 months".

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is set to play an increasingly important role in easing the chronic lack of registered nurses in rural Australia.   Sixty enrolled nurses (ENs) will attend residential schools on CSU’s Wagga Wagga Campus over the next two weeks to begin study in the Bachelor of Nursing by distance education course.   The program is part of a partnership between CSU, the Greater Southern Area Health Service (GSAHS) and Victoria’s Hume Health.   Those sixty nurses will be officially welcomed at 10am tomorrow, Tuesday 6 February, by Head of CSU’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, Professor Elaine Duffy and the GSAHS Area Director of Nursing, Ms Moira Lewis in the Wal Fife theatre, Wagga Wagga Campus.   Nursing course coordinator Heather Latham says “This is a significant partnership and initiative to address the shortage of registered nurses in rural Australia”.