Musician Mr Tommy Emmanuel will receive an honorary Doctor of Arts from Charles Sturt University (CSU) at an Alumni event at the Australian Museum in Sydney on Wednesday 27 November. Mr Emmanuel was born and raised in CSU’s footprint region and is an internationally renowned guitarist. He has strong connections to rural and regional communities. The event will also feature guest speaker and CSU Alumnus Mr Michael Ebeid. Mr Ebeid is Managing Director of SBS Broadcasting and has more than 24 years experience in senior management and executive roles across the technology, telecommunications, and media industries. Guests will sample CSU’s award-winning wines and receive complementary access to the Tyrannosaurs – Meet the Family exhibition from 5pm to 6pm. CSU Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Andrew Vann, said the event is a great opportunity for CSU’s extended community to hear what is happening at their University.

Teacher education academics at Charles Sturt University (CSU) are taking the 'kitchen garden in schools' concept a step further with a garden of Indigenous food plants. One of 11 projects to be awarded a Sustainability Grant in 2012 from CSU Green, the Indigenous Food Garden is located around the School of Education building at CSU in Wagga Wagga. The new garden aims to 'increase biodiversity and bird habitat, provide better environment for staff, to be used as a teaching resource, help build links with Indigenous community, and see that flow through teaching'. It was planted earlier this year under the guidance of a local Indigenous group. Native plants have been used on one side of the building to attract native birds. The remaining area has been planted with indigenous food plants. One of the CSU staff behind the project is lecturer Ms Jacqui Tinkler. She said, "The project demonstrates that just the simple act of planting a garden is a powerful way to reconnect with not only the land, but also with the people who used the land for food. So many of us have become very disconnected from the way we get our food and the land that produces it. By planting a garden full of Indigenous plants that can be used for food, I wanted to create a space where people could come and learn about these plants and our connection to the land."

How to bring modern agriculture and horticulture into the classroom will be a major topic to be discussed by primary and secondary school teachers during a day-long professional development seminar hosted by Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) in the Wangaratta Study Centre on Friday 29 November. The day has been designed for teachers interested in agriculture, horticulture, primary industries, and food and fibre production. They will hear presentations by senior lecturer Dr John Harper from the University’s School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences and representatives from Victorian schools, farmers and the University of Melbourne on the latest ideas and technology that aim to maintain and improve rural production as well as promote future professional careers in agricultural and related industries. “Teachers expressed a need to develop their knowledge and skills to allow them to bring agriculture and horticulture into all aspects of the curriculum,” said Ms Ilena Young, school outreach coordinator at CSU in Wangaratta. The professional development seminar runs from 9.30am to 3.30pm on Friday 29 November at the CSU / GOTAFE Rural Industries Campus, Tone Rd, Wangaratta.

What does a bus shelter have in common with the annual collection of poetry and prose produced by the Booranga Writers' Centre at Charles Sturt University (CSU)? The Centre’s 2013 fourW anthology will preserve forever in print the eight poems which have featured on Wagga Wagga bus shelters since 2011. Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Mr David Gilbey, from CSU’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences said the bus stop poems and their distinctive illustrations add to the eclectic mix of writing styles and subject matter in the literary anthology. “For 24 years fourW has provided a voice for regional writers, an opportunity for new writers to be published and a meeting place for writers from around Australia and overseas to come together for a ‘global’ literary conversation,”  he said. CSU Head of Campus Ms Miriam Dayhew will officially launch fourW twenty-four on Saturday 23 November from 2pm at the Wagga Wagga City Library. Winners of the Booranga Prize for best poem and best short story will also be announced. The anthology is produced with support from the NSW Government through Arts NSW, Wagga Wagga City Council, and CSU.

Charles Sturt University's (CSU) sustainability unit, CSU Green, will work with a new centre for excellence in environmental education to promote sustainability and environmental issues. CSU Green will work with the Regional Centre of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development for the Murray Darling Basin (RCE-MD) to generate awareness of the Centre within CSU and in the broader community. CSU Green manager, Mr Ed Maher, says he is looking forward to working with RCE-MD to help achieve positive sustainability outcomes. "The Centre will be a 'think tank' of expertise that will inform and educate on sustainability, share resources and ideas, and link up educational providers, employers, industries and the wider community," Mr Maher said. "For CSU Green, this means that Charles Sturt University will be making a big step towards meeting its potential to influence sustainability outcomes beyond its own boundaries." CSU is one of three lead institutions involved in the Centre along with Wodonga TAFE and La Trobe University. You can read more about the RCE-MD here.

Three students from Kooringal High School (KHS) in Wagga Wagga have taken out the Riverina prize in the 2013 Game On competition for Years 10 and 11 students enrolled in commerce, economics, legal studies, and other related subjects. The KHS students built and operated their own ‘virtual’ business, titled ‘Ranga’, in a computer simulated market and competition hosted by Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Faculty of Business. Local Game On coordinator and Associate Head of School of Management and Marketing, Dr Padma Nathan, said, “The exercise aims to help students develop skills in finance, human resource management, marketing, and operations that are relevant to the real world. Game On complements the Stage 6 NSW Business Studies curriculum.” The simulation ran from May until September 2013 with eight rounds of competition between over 550 students from 23 NSW high schools from Port Macquarie to Albury. It enables students to learn through hands-on experience and encourages students to apply these key business principles to their own ‘virtual’ smart phone business.  

A Charles Sturt University (CSU) student is inviting members of the Wagga Wagga community to snack on chickpeas all in the name of research. Mrs Soumi Paul Mukhopadhyay is a PhD student in the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga. Her free ‘Snack Food Tasting’ session will be held in the Senior Citizens’ Community Hall in Tarcutta Street near the monthly Farmers’ Markets from 8.30am to 1.30pm on Saturday 9 November. “I am hoping that people will come along and taste an Indian snack which is new to Australian tastebuds. Once they have tasted the fried chickpeas, I will ask them to fill out a short survey. There’ll be great rewards for the taste testing volunteers,” Mrs Paul Mukhopadhyay said. The CSU student is examining consumer preferences for cooked chickpeas in Australia and India, the world’s largest consumer of chickpeas and a key market for Australian exporters. Read more about research into chickpeas in CSU News here.

Children receiving occupational therapy are rarely asked to speak about their experiences with allied health professionals such as occupational therapists, but a Charles Sturt University (CSU) researcher is planning to change that. Ms Nadine Milgate, based at CSU in Wagga Wagga, is looking for stories of school children aged between seven and 10 years who currently receive occupational therapy. “It is important to hear from children about their experiences of occupational therapy and how they make sense of the interventions,” said Ms Milgate, who is completing her PhD with the University’s School of Community Health in Albury-Wodonga. Ms Milgate would like to hear from parents and caregivers of children receiving occupational therapy who would like to take part in the research. The study involves Ms Milgate spending time with the child to ask questions about their experiences of occupational therapy. Parents and caregivers interested in including their child in this research should contact Ms Milgate on mobile 0409 501 154 or send an email.

When the locally made film Backyard Ashes premieres in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday some Charles Sturt University (CSU) students will be eagerly scanning the credits. More than 20 CSU students and recent graduates were part of the cast and crew over four weeks of filming in the city.  Final year television production student Mr Jack Walsh was Second Camera Assistant on the production and said he’s been able to apply his experience on set to his study through the School of Communication and Creative Industries at CSU in Wagga Wagga. “Working on a real film has given me a greater understanding of what is required in each role behind the scenes,” Mr Walsh said. “I’ve been able to use what I learnt about cameras and lenses in my own productions.” Shot in central Wagga Wagga, Backyard Ashes tells the story of how two neighbours attempt to solve their differences in the ultimate backyard cricketing challenge. The movie will be in cinemas in Albury, Orange, Tamworth and Wagga Wagga from Thursday 7 November. Originally from Cootamundra, Mr Walsh will graduate during a ceremony at CSU in Wagga Wagga in December. He has secured a job with Network Ten as a Production Assistant.