Filled with excitement and apprehension, more than 450 students commence studies at CSU in Albury-Wodonga in 2014.

A senior medical researcher at CSU will outline recent research on diabetes in regional Australia in a public lecture on Tuesday 25 February.

Parkinson's disease and rheumatoid arthritis patients in and around Albury-Wodonga are urgently needed to help complete a CSU research study into the role of free radical chemicals and the inflammation they cause.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst will host a 'Skill Fix' event for 170 Year-12 students from Denison College on Thursday 13 February. The University's Future Moves program has organised a full-day program of workshops to improve the students' skills in writing, research, note-taking, exam preparation, and time management. Mr Ben Morris, CSU Future Moves program coordinator, said, "Teachers from Denison College in Bathurst and specialists from the University and Future Moves will deliver the sessions. University student leaders also support this event which will provide young people with a great learning experience in the university setting. The high school students will experience what it's like to be a university student for a day."

The 2014 grape harvest at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) vineyard in Orange will begin next week. Despite the recent hot weather, CSU winemaker Mr Andrew Drumm expects a quality vintage. Mr Drumm said the harvest had been brought forward due to the hot weather but this hadn't hurt the quality of the fruit. "We'll pick Chardonnay first, but we also grow Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet, Pinot Gris, and Riesling in Orange," he said. "We expect slightly lower volumes than the previous three or four years, which have been challenging because of late rain. Consequently, we had to carefully select the fruit we used to make the wine. This year, it looks like we'll be able to use almost all the fruit we pick." CSU Winery produces about 100 tons of fruit a year in its vineyards at Wagga Wagga and Orange. Last year produced about 10 000 cases of wine, marketed as Charles Sturt Wines.

The Charles Sturt University (CSU) Winery will begin the 2014 grape harvest in Wagga Wagga on Wednesday 12 February, with winemaker Mr Andrew Drumm expecting a quality vintage despite the recent hot weather. Mr Drumm said the harvest had been brought forward because of the hot spell, but the weather hadn't hurt the quality of the fruit. "We'll pick Muscat and Shiraz to begin with, and the volumes will probably be a little down on previous years," he said. "But the past three or four years have been challenging because we've had late rain, and we've had to really pick and choose the fruit we've used to make the wine. This year it looks like we'll be able to use almost all the fruit we pick." CSU Winery produces about 100 tons of fruit a year in its vineyards at Wagga Wagga and Orange, and last year produced about 10 000 cases of wine, marketed as Charles Sturt Wines.

Higher School Certificate (HSC) chemistry students will visit Charles Sturt University (CSU) for a series of laboratory activities and information sessions from Monday 17 to Thursday 20 February. The HSC Chemistry Days are organised by the University's Faculty of Science as part of an outreach program which includes work with students, teachers and Indigenous communities. Approximately 226 HSC students are drawn from NSW schools in Albury, Cootamundra, Wagga Wagga, Young, Narrandera, Corowa, Tumut and Forbes, and will have an opportunity to interview the scientists about their work. Another daily highlight will be a 'Magic Show' hosted by academics from the University's School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences in the National Life Sciences Hub from approximately 1.30pm to 2.30pm.

If you have an old tree on your property that might bear the marks of surveyors from the past, or you know of one, researcher Dr Peter Spooner from Charles Sturt University's (CSU) Institute for Land, Water and Society wants to hear from you. Dr Spooner is creating an inventory of survey heritage trees around Culcairn and Holbrook in southern NSW. Eucalyptus, pine or casuarina trees were marked by the first surveyors and explorers in many parts of rural Australia. "These trees often marked the boundaries of the first land parcels surveyed in the late 1800s," Dr Spooner said. "Many trees would be over 200 years old and be important for cultural heritage and biodiversity, as large old eucalypt trees normally have hollows which provide important habitat for many native animals." Early surveyors cut a 'blaze' in the tree with an axe, producing a unique mark such a government arrow symbol and the adjacent lot number. However, many markings would have decayed or grown over, making them difficult to recognise. "Identifying the location and attributes of heritage trees can provide important insights to our past, record the development of Australian rural landscapes, and inform future conservation management activities," Dr Spooner said.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) students studying remotely will have some extra help from next week when the Distance Education Outreach team (DE Outreach) begins visiting regional centres. DE Outreach Team manager Mr James Brann said, "Our aim is to assist all students to overcome problems they may encounter when studying by distance education. The DE Outreach advisers will provide face-to-face and group appointments to new distance education students to help them develop new study skills, provide feedback on assignment tasks, and answer questions about distance education study. The team is also contactable via the DE Outreach website, Skype or email, and by specially-designed Online Orientation Outreach sessions for those who don't live near towns and centres visited by the team." DE Outreach will be in selected regional centres from Tuesday 18 February. Consultation sessions are also available online, and the full schedule and a booking form are available here.Tuesday 18 February, 10.30am-7.30pm: Melbourne, and Brisbane.Wednesday 19 February, 10.30am-7.30pm: Melbourne, and Brisbane.Monday 24 February, 2.30pm-7pm: Sydney Olympic Park, Barton (Canberra), Parkes, Port Macquarie, Benalla (Victoria), Wangaratta (Victoria).Tuesday 25 February, 2.30pm-7pm: Barton (Canberra), Benalla (Victoria), Sydney Olympic Park; and Dubbo (10.30am-7.30pm).Wednesday 26 February, 2.30pm-7pm: Nowra, Shepparton (Victoria), Sydney Olympic Park, and Cowra (10.30pm-7.30pm).Thursday 27 February, 2.30pm-7pm: Cooma, Bendigo; and Mudgee (10.30am-7.30pm), and Griffith (5.30pm-7pm).Friday 28 February, 10.30pm-12pm: Cooma.Monday 3 March, 2.30pm-7pm: Yass, Wollongong; and Taree (2.30pm-7.30pm).