Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga has announced it will demolish aging student accommodation cottages located along Village Way at the end of the year.CSU Division of Facilities Management (DFM) Executive Director Stephen Butt said the 18 cottages located along Village Way were built over 50 years ago and had reached the end of their useful life.“The campus has several assets built in the early 1950’s and 1960’s. Similar to Doman building which was demolished recently, the cottages have reached their end of their useful life and to mitigate risk and maintenance costs to the University, they need to be demolished,” Mr Butt said.DFM Project Manager Ms Emma McCormick said, “A new refurbished landscape precinct for staff and students will be implemented along Village Way with wider plans for other residential accommodation revitalisation.”DFM has joined Residence Life to acknowledge that the cottages aren’t simply old structures but ones that hold special memories for past and present staff and students. People who have stories and photos of life on Village Way are encouraged to share them with the University.CSU is calling for people’s memories of living in the colourful cottages of Village Way including:photos and memories from any teachers who lived there with their families, starting from around 1950photos and memories from any students who moved in from around the 1970’s as the cottages expandedphotos of the unique sunsets over Pine Gully Rd residents have watched and enjoyed over the years.“Preservation of the history of this asset is significant to the future of Charles Sturt University,” Mr Butt said.People who want to share their photos and stores are asked to upload them to the Remembering Village Way site where they will be published in a commemorative book to preserve the history of Village Way.

Olympian and equestrian coach Mr Heath Ryan helped train and inspire Australia’s next Olympic hopefuls at a recent two-day clinic held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga.Held at the new equestrian centre and organised by the Equestrian Students Association, the clinic was attended by CSU students and local riders. CSU Animal and Veterinary Science student and ESA president Ms Belinda Flynn said the club was excited to bring someone of Mr Ryan’s reputation and standard to Wagga Wagga.“Within 10 minutes of posting the clinic on Facebook, 77 people had signed up for one of the 25 places on offer,” Ms Flynn said, adding that the number grew to 380 expressions of interest.The clinic Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 September attracted dressage and eventing competitors who were working their way to elite level, with some competing in Australia’s only four-star three-day event and FEI international dressage competitions.Mr Ryan said he was very interested in seeing the CSU equestrian facilities and riders from the Riverina because of the enormous potential of the bush and its recent competition resurgence.“I’m very interested to have a look and encourage them and let them know it’s not hopeless kicking away at this sport, in fact I believe it [being in rural Australia] is about to become a significant contributor to Australia winning gold,” Mr Ryan said.He noted that Wagga Wagga had produced its fair-share of gold medal winning riders and horses in the past.Mr Ryan described the CSU Equestrian Centre as international standard, saying he was “seriously impressed” with its facilities and that he was keen bring attention to it.“It’s a wonderful launching facility in terms of riders and horses who want to compete internationally,” Mr Ryan said when talking about the high standard of the stables, show jumping and dressage arenas.When asked about the clinic, CSU Senior Lecturer in Equine Studies Dr Petra Buckley said, “I believe it is super exciting for students and staff, and super important to have such well-respected, high profile industry people involved in sharing their expertise”.She noted it was a good way to strengthen the bond between science and industry, and that it made CSU an ‘in touch’ kind of a place to study.Photo: Heath Ryan and CSU Senior Technical Officer Marion Kater on day one of clinic.

CSU Riverina Playhouse re-opens Saturday 15 September after more than $3.5 million in improvementsMedia are invited to tour the refurbished venue at 11am Friday 14 SeptemberImprovements include seating, air-conditioning and improved facilities for theatre performance and presentationA new act opens on the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Riverina Playhouse with its reopening on 15 September after building work completed to ensure its long-term future as a teaching and performance space.CSU Division of Facilities Management (DFM) Executive Director Stephen Butt said prior to undertaking the work the University completed a significant review of the Playhouse where it identified over $3.5 million in improvements that were needed for the venue to continue for another 20 years.“Charles Sturt University undertook a comprehensive review of the building by working closely with the community.As a result of the review it became clear the Riverina Playhouse was a vital part of the Wagga Wagga creative community and a vital teaching resource for the University,” Mr Butt said.CSU Riverina Playhouse Manager John Jones said the venue had a history and connection with the Wagga Wagga community as well as students.“The Riverina Playhouse was opened in 1986 and for many locals it has become a venue that supports the Wagga Wagga performance community.The refurbished building will strengthen its role in servicing the needs of the community, provide Charles Sturt University acting and design students with an industry quality teaching resource and it will be a home for the University Theatre Ensemble,” Mr Jones said.Mr Jones said the completed works vastly improved the comfort of the venue with new seating and air conditioning, but most importantly too it enhanced the University’s performance and presentation ability.“The improvements to the Riverina Playhouse will make it a more attractive venue for performances by CSU students and the Wagga Wagga community as well as ensure it meets compliance and licencing requirements,” Mr Jones said.Media are invited to tour the refurbished venue at 11am Friday 14 September ahead of its opening on Saturday 15 September at 6.30pm.Following its re-opening the CSU Riverina Playhouse is looking forward to a packed three months as the University Theatre Ensemble will stage three productions over six weeks. This will be followed by “In the Spotlight” a production throughout November to raise funds for the Specialist Medical Resources Foundation, Darren Coggan returns with another show that has almost sold out, American Ragtime pianist Adam Swanson, and LIOR in early December.Working around the University Theatre Ensemble and CSU teaching program the Riverina Playhouse has interest for local and touring performances over 2019 and as far out as 2020.

* New entrepreneurs will present their initiatives at a ‘Pitch Evening’ at CSU AgriTech Incubator on Monday 10 September in Wagga Wagga * Media opportunity at 10am with founder of Outback Wings which will provide animal health care and 24-hour emergency vet services across a 7.69 million square-kilometre area * Guest speaker at the ‘Pitch Night’ is an internationally recognized food systems innovation expert and CEO of AgThentic, a global food and agriculture strategy firmSix more emerging entrepreneurs from across the Riverina will present their initiatives at a ‘Pitch Evening’ at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) AgriTech Incubator on Monday 10 September in Wagga Wagga.Earlier that day a media opportunity at 10am at the AgriTech Incubator, building 6, CSU Wagga Wagga (car park 11) is available to meet AgriTech Incubator participant and founder of Outback Wings, Ms Mackenzie Bond, a first-year CSU student studying a Bachelor of Animal Science.AgriTech Incubator project officer Ms Siobhain Howard said, “The emerging entrepreneurs have been developing their business ideas at the third CSU AgriTech Incubator program. “The AgriTech Incubator aims to spark innovation and economic development in the Riverina region by supporting the development of start-up companies and facilitating innovation within small-to-medium-sized enterprises by providing access to University expertise and facilities.“While the AgriTech Incubator specifically encourages start-ups seeking to leverage new technologies from ‘farm to fork’, it is open to participation by any ‘tech-enabled’ regional start-up.“The current cohort of start-up founders have been refining their business concept in a supportive and collaborative environment at the University in Wagga Wagga.“Participants have been working on a number of diverse ideas, ranging from food labelling to a disruptive insurance platform and veterinary services for the outback.“The Incubator Program concludes with a ‘Pitch Evening’ on 10 September, with participants having five minutes to pitch their business idea to the audience.”The guest speaker at the ‘Pitch Night’ is Ms Sarah Nolet, an internationally recognized food systems innovation expert and the CEO of AgThentic, a global food and agriculture strategy firm. Ms Nolet has been instrumental in building the early stage agtech ecosystem in Australia. She has advised dozens of start-ups, designed accelerator programs, and consulted to established agribusinesses, as well as helping industry, universities, and government to develop and implement forward-looking initiatives in food system innovation.Agritech Incubator participant Ms Mackenzie Bond (pictured left), a first year CSU student studying a bachelor of Animal Science, is the founder of Outback Wings. Outback Wings will aim to provide animal health care and reliable 24-hour emergency vet services across a 7.69 million square-kilometre area and is inspired by the Royal Flying Doctors Service of Australia. The services will aid sustainable crop and stock feed production, as well as growth in commercial livestock enterprises. Outback Wings is dedicated to improving animal health and biosecurity in rural and remote regions of Australia.More information can be found at: http://innovate.csu.edu.au/incubators/agritech

* CSU forum to explore new technologies that shape people’s digital lives * Speakers include industry experts renowned in their fieldsCharles Sturt University (CSU) will present the second in a series of community forums in Wagga Wagga to explore technologies that are already part of our daily digital lives and how they will continue to shape societyThe ‘Your Digital Life – can you imagine?’ forum is presented by the uImagine team in the CSU Division of Learning and Teaching in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 12 September.uImagine’s Mr Tim Klapdor said the event was opens to adults, business people, educators and the broader community of the Riverina region.“The advent of digital technologies is impacting many aspects of our lives now and in the future,” Mr Klapdor said. “This forum is designed to create an awareness of how drones, augmented reality, and virtual reality can impact the way we learn, live, and participate in the world around us.”“Participants will be guided by industry experts renowned in their fields. These specialists will explore how our lives are being impacted in ways most of us never imagined.”The ‘Your Digital Life – can you imagine?’ event offers the opportunity to:* learn about new technologies that can shape people’s digital lives* experience virtual reality, and try augmented reality* see different types of drones and how they are usedMr Klapdor said that if people can’t attend in person but would like to experience the forum online they can register at Eventbrite to watch the livestreamed event.Register at https://tinyurl.com/YourDigitalLifeWatch the Livestream via http://waggawagga.tv/This uImagine forum is supported by community partners, including Wagga Wagga City Council; Wagga Wagga TV; The Wagga Weekly; Jar Aero-Space; Essential Energy; Awe Media; and the CSU AgriTech Incubator.The ‘Your Digital Life – can you imagine?’ event is from 4.30pm to 8.30pm at Wagga Wagga Council Chambers, corner of Baylis and Morrow Streets, Wagga Wagga.Find out more about uImagine events here: https://uimagine.edu.au/events/

Charles Sturt University (CSU) vets have put their expertise to good use, helping Kooringal High School in Wagga Wagga develop its sheep breeding program.The school’s award-winning Poll Dorset flock now has three new lambs, thanks to an artificial insemination (AI) program made possible by the work of Dr Allan Gunn and post graduate research student Dr Liz Jones from the CSU School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences.Dr Gunn said, “The school wanted to show their agriculture students that advanced reproduction techniques, such as synchronisation and AI, is an option to breeding in both the cattle and sheep industry. The animal reproduction unit from Charles Sturt University had synchronised and bred the school Jersey cow earlier in the year, and then bred the ewes with semen donated by a Poll Dorset stud.“Supporting our regional communities is an important part of the University’s ethos. We are pleased to showcase our expertise and enthusiasm to a new generation of agricultural scientists, to encourage sustainable and welfare friendly production of food in the future.”Kooringal High School agriculture teacher Mr Stephen Reynolds said, “Charles Sturt University has been invaluable for our agricultural department over the last few years with their veterinary skills and a willingness to educate our students about reproduction techniques associated with Artificial Insemination.“This association has been instrumental as a teaching tool for myself and as a learning objective for our senior students. Reproduction techniques are part of the two unit senior agriculture curriculum and this has given students the opportunity to see it first-hand,” Mr Reynolds said.A veterinarian, Dr Jones is studying for her professional doctorate and her research is focused on reproduction in sheep, specifically the impact of a hormone found in the gut of the animals.“Taking part in this program was an opportunity to link the theory with real life practice and to be able to develop my skills in advanced reproductive techniques such as laparoscopic AI,” Dr Jones said.“My research is examining a hormone produced in the gut called GLP-1, in sheep. It is a hormonal signal that suppresses appetite in response to feed intake.“We suspect it also influences reproduction, but very little research has been done on this possible link, and none in ruminants.“A better understanding of this relationship may will shed light on why underfed animals have poorer fertility than those that are well-fed and in good condition.“This research is also of interest to human health, as the obesity epidemic has led to GLP-1-like drugs being used for weight management, including in people of child-bearing age, with little information on its relationship with reproduction and fertility.”Dr Gunn and Dr Jones are members of the Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation, a research alliance between CSU and the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI).The Veterinary Clinical Centre (VCC) at CSU provides animal reproductive services including semen examination, artificial insemination, embryo transfer and infertility investigations.

An art exhibition drawing on the experiences and research of Charles Sturt University (CSU) students during their recent tour of Japan is now on show in Wagga Wagga.Eleven CSU students from the Faculty of Art and Education led by lecturer Ms Rachel Walls, toured Japan for two weeks in February this year to immerse themselves in an ancient culture while visiting sites with significant relevance to popular media, history and art.“The tour allowed the students to explore and expand their knowledge through research specific to Japan, a culturally challenging location where issues of language and social norms need to be carefully observed,” Ms Walls said.“They learned how to be resourceful, aware and respectful in finding and navigating sites for their research.”The trip introduced the students to Japan as a place and a culture. Students looked into Shinto and Buddhist beliefs, and how these are woven into the fabric of Japanese society, as well as on traditional theatre, crafts, and textiles.“We also learned about the disappearing of intangible cultural heritage, often in the form of traditional crafts.“Students were asked to consider the ‘differences’ presented by a much older country with a history that they wish to preserve, particularly in relation to Australia’s, and Charles Sturt University’s, struggle to rescue Aboriginal language and culture systems,” Ms Walls said.During the tour, the students identified and commenced researching their own topics on Japanese culture and art, something normally reserved for postgraduate studies.“I wanted them to lead their own research, blending both practice and academic methodologies. The exhibition demonstrates their ideas and impressions from Japan.“The exhibition also shows the students’ enthusiastic and creative responses, which are really diverse and demonstrate the wide backgrounds of our students.“The results are outstanding as a synthesis of academic research and creative freedom within a cultural study.”The exhibition is part of their assessment for the tour, which was funded in part by the Federal government’s New Colombo Plan and supported by CSU Global. The exhibition ends on Wednesday 29 August, and is near the HR Gallop Gallery (room 227), Building 21 at CSU in Wagga Wagga.Applications for the next tour to Japan in 2019 are now open to CSU students.

* Major exhibition by acclaimed Australian artists to open in Wagga Wagga * Exhibition to then tour NSW regional centres * Related workshop and seminar will examine ‘Orientalism’A major exhibition will commence its two-year tour to regional centres when it opens to the public at the HR Gallop Gallery (building 21) at Charles Sturt University (CSU), in Wagga Wagga from 10am on Monday 13 August 2018.The exhibition Elsewhere: Travels through Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Iran and Central Asia will be officially launched 10 days later at the HR Gallop Gallery at 6pm on Thursday 23 August.This exhibition has been curated by Dr Sam Bowker (pictured left) lecturer in art history and visual culture in the CSU School of Communication and Creative Industries in Wagga Wagga, with the support of assistant curator Ms Jessica Green.Dr Bowker said Elsewhere is a touring exhibition that will depart Wagga Wagga to be exhibited in Griffith later in 2018, in Dubbo and Port Macquarie in 2019, and in Tamworth in 2020.“The exhibition coincides with the 40th anniversary of Edward Said’s book Orientalism,” Dr Bowker said.“In the exhibition acclaimed Australian artists Wendy Sharpe and Bernard Ollis critically reflect on travel and drawing as creative practices to help us witness and understand each other.“Wendy Sharpe is a winner of the Archibald Prize, and has served as an Official War Artist for the Australian War Memorial, and subsequently served on the AWM's Board of Directors.“Bernard Ollis is an internationally acclaimed artist and the former Director of the National Art School in Sydney.“I commend this exhibition to all who are interested in art and the world seen through artists’ eyes,” Dr Bowker said.The exhibition also includes a Booranga Writers’ Centre workshop at the HR Gallop Gallery from 2pm to 4pm on Saturday 18 August, and a seminar, ‘Art after Orientalism’, from 1pm to 2pm on Thursday 30 August in the lecture theatre beside the HR Gallop Gallery at CSU.The Elsewhere: Travels through Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Iran and Central Asia exhibition tour has been made possible through the support of the NSW Government through Create NSW, and Charles Sturt University.The free exhibition opens to the public at the HR Gallop Gallery (building 21) on Darnell Smith Drive at CSU in Wagga Wagga from 10am on Monday 13 August to Friday 7 September. The official launch is at 6pm on Thursday 23 August.

Bob and Pam Knight’s significant $250,000 donation will allow Charles Sturt University (CSU) to create a scholarship program that will support regional veterinary students complete their studies.The scholarship program will be called the Legacy of Bob and Pam Knight from Noorat and will use the endowment to fund three $5,000 scholarships to Veterinary students each year in perpetuity.CSU Director of Advancement Ms Sarah Ansell said the endowment reflected Bob and Pam Knight’s passion for the University’s veterinary science program and their commitment to support students in regional Australia, particularly regional Victoria.“The scholarships will alleviate some of the financial barriers faced by regional students and ensure regional communities have a strong supply of veterinary science graduates.” Ms Ansell said.Having run their own regional veterinary practice for many years, Bob and Pam are well aware of the need for veterinary services in regional Australia. They also understand the high costs associated with study and how this can be a barrier for some students.Their scholarship is designed to reduce financial pressure by providing funds to cover important components such as textbooks, equipment and the cost of completing practical placements.Bob and Pam Knight presented this generous gift to the University during a recent visit to CSU in Wagga Wagga.Photo (left to right): Michael Van Diggelen (veterinary science student), Dr David Golland (practitioner), Associate Professor Kris Hughes (CSU Academic), Evie Beech (veterinary science student), Associate Professor Jane Heller (CSU Academic), Mrs Pam Knight, Associate Professor Rob Woodgate (CSU Academic, Acting Head of School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences), Doctor Bob Knight, Professor Glenn Edwards (Interim Dean, Faculty of Science, CSU), Sarah Ansell (CSU Director of Advancement) and Ben Mills (veterinary science student).