An exhibition using art and science to depict water will open in Albury on Thursday 14 October. Titled Water on Tap?, the exhibition highlights 15 works by Charles Sturt University (CSU) staff as part of National Water Week. Ms Julie Montgarrett and Ms Margaret Waller from the School of Communication and Creative Industries at CSU will explore water management in a collaborative photographic and textile piece, as well as digital photographs by Mr Jamie Holcombe and a computer generated flyover the Murray River. There is also a video by CSU television production students on water research being carried out by researchers from the University’s Institute for Land, Water and Society (ILWS) and display of the Murray Catchment Management Authorities 'Edward Wakool' project. The display, sponsored by ILWS, Murray Catchment Management Authority and Albury City, will be opened with a 'Meet the Artists' event at 6pm, Thursday 14 October in the Albury Regional Art Gallery, Dean St, Albury.

The role of prophets in Christianity and Islam will be explored in a free public talk to be held at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 13 October. The speakers are CSU Professor of Theology and Executive Director of the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture, Reverend Professor James Haire and CSU adjunct lecturer and Executive Director of Islamic Sciences and Research Academy of Australia, Mr Mehmet Ozalp. The dialogue between the two leading religious figures will examine how Christianity and Islam view prophets, their role and characteristics. How does one know a person claiming to be a prophet is telling the truth? What is the central place and meaning of Jesus Christ in Christianity? What is the role and importance of the Prophet Muhammad in Islam? Essentially the lecture will look at how Islam views Jesus Christ and how Christianity views the Prophet Muhammad. The public lecture will be held from 11am to 1pm in the Wal Fife Theatre at CSU in Wagga Wagga.  

Third year Bachelor of Nursing students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Dubbo celebrated their final day of study today  before venturing into their professional career. A BBQ lunch was followed by professional photos of the 15 students. “The group is graduating as registered nurses and the majority will be employed in the local and surrounding areas,” said Academic Advisor, Ms Cathy Maginnis. The students will officially graduate early 2011. “The completion of the course is an accumulation of a lot of hard work. During their time at Charles Sturt University, the students had the opportunity to undertake clinical placements in a variety of health care settings in many different rural locations and cities.” 

Charles Sturt University (CSU) marketing students will test their skills when they pitch marketing strategies to the owners of a newly-established boutique brewery in the Bathurst region on Thursday 14 October. Marketing lecturer at the School of Business at CSU in Bathurst, Mr Andrew Mashman, said three groups of students in the Bachelor of Business (Marketing) and Bachelor of Business (Management) programs will deliver 15 minute presentations to the clients, Mr and Mrs Mick and Deb Hoban of Fish River Valley Brewing (FRVB). “The Hobans aim to create fine ales in the beautiful and historic area of the Fish River Valley upstream and east of Bathurst,” Mr Mashman said. “Freshness and quality of product are the critical aspects for FRVB, so how they achieve this better than their competitors is the biggest challenge. Our students have enjoyed this experience and I look forward to seeing the results of their research and planning when they present their ideas to the Hobans.”

For the second successive year, Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be well represented at an international meat judging competition in the USA in January next year. Two CSU students were recently selected to part of the five-member Australian team to tour the USA in January during the national college competitions. The selection of Bachelor of Agricultural Science  student Ms Jess Loughland and Bachelor of Veterinary Science student Ms Claire Pettessen followed an intensive national training workshop held in Brisbane at the end of September. “Charles Sturt University has a proud record of having two participants in this Australian team annually over the past two years,” Professor of Animal Production Peter Wynn said. “The success of our students augurs well for the future of the animal industries in our region.”

Accessibility and human rights, instead of rigid funding models, should be the priorities when planning health care services for rural and remote Australia says Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Professor of Rural and Remote Pharmacy Patrick Ball. “A model of health care funding for rural and remote Australia should be developed based on fundamental human rights and access to services rather than ‘bricks and mortar’,” Professor Patrick Ball said. The CSU academic studied two communities in central west NSW between 2006 and 2008 as part of his examination of the provision of health services outside metropolitan Australia. “We have the evidence to show that what is needed by rural and remote areas is more flexibility in allowing individual communities to meet their health needs and more emphasis on access to services rather than what hospital and which health facilities are located where.” Professor Patrick Ball will present a free public lecture on his research from 6pm in Temora on Wednesday 27 October.

Staff and students at Charles Sturt University (CSU) are gearing up to participate in the national Ride to Work day  on Wednesday 13 October. Groups of at five of the University’s campuses will cycle to work. “The Ride to Work program encourages workers to feel good and have fun by commuting to work by bike and experiencing the health, financial and environmental benefits of riding,”  cyclist and Manager of CSU Green Mr William Adlong said. “We have not only regular riders who will be taking part, but also staff members who usually drive their cars to work.” CSU has participated in the Ride to Work event for at least five years. A recent follow-up survey for the national Ride to Work program shows 39 percent of first-time commuters are now riding to work at least once per month and 55 percent are riding more often than this time last year.

An academic from Iceland has joined Charles Sturt University (CSU) education experts to develop better ways of listening and responding to children’s views on preparing for and going to school. Dr Johanna Einardottir, an education researcher with the University of Iceland, is particularly interested in the ways teachers get children’s views on starting school, using methods as varied as drawing, interviews, cameras and group discussions. “I have already seen how similar children are globally in regards to what concerns them, such as moving away from family and finding new friends,” she said. However, Dr Einardottir has noted some differences. “In Nordic countries such as Iceland, children go to school when they are aged six or seven years, and most are in pre-school from two-years-old. In Iceland, the government pays 80 per cent of pre-school fees.” Since arriving in Albury two weeks ago, Dr Einardottir has already attended a conference in Adelaide and is currently preparing for a major education conference on Tuesday 12 October on children starting school.

Internationally acclaimed wetland ecologist, Adjunct Professor David Mitchell, from Charles Sturt University (CSU) will deliver a free public lecture from 6pm in Parkes on Tuesday 19 October entitled Water, Drought and Climate Change. He will discuss developments in the management of water in Australian landscapes. “Concern is currently growing within Australia about the possibility of profound changes in climatic conditions and their potential to undermine many of the strategies that have been developed to sustain necessary agricultural production,” Professor Mitchell said. Professor Mitchell is from the CSU School of Environmental Sciences in Albury-Wodonga and is Principal Researcher at the University’s Institute of Land, Water and Society.