“Lazarus with a triple bypass”. The year was 1989, and John Howard had just lost the Opposition leadership. One reporter at the media conference asked him if he felt like a “political corpse”, another if he thought he could ever regain the leadership. How did John Howard go from that moment in political time, to today marking his tenth year in office with four straight election wins, making him Australia’s second-longest serving Prime Minister? Dr Wayne Errington (left), Lecturer in the School of Social Sciences and Liberal Studies at Charles Sturt University (CSU) is currently writing a biography about John Howard, and will present a paper to a weekend conference looking at Mr Howard’s skill as a politician and his refusal to succumb to political rejection. “He’s grown as a politician, he’s a much more calm person than he was 10 or 15 years ago, he’s much more measured in his policies, he’s prepared to compromise to get things through the senate or to mollify public opinion, and that’s a recipe for a much more successful conservative politician.” Dr Errington’s paper also examines all the elements that have led to John Howard’s remarkable four election wins.

Are you around 50 years, female and have a pain in the heel? Podiatry honours student at Charles Sturt University (CSU) Luke Hewitt is looking for middle aged women with heel and foot pain in the Albury-Wodonga area. “Heel pain affects over 10 per cent of the population and is more common among middle aged women. As part of our research we will test treatments including orthotics to lessen or cure heel pain,” said Mr Hewitt. If you are a woman aged between 30 and 60 years and you suffer pain on the bottom of your heel, Mr Hewitt, supervised by qualified CSU podiatrists, will assess the condition and treatment options as a free service as part of his research at the CSU Allied Health Clinic. The clinic is located on the corner of Guinea and Olive Streets, Albury, each Wednesday and Thursday starting tomorrow, Wednesday 1 March. To take part in the study, contact Mr Hewitt on telephone 02 6051 6733.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) scientists will be paying particular attention to birds and pollinating insects in Albury streets over the next few months.The researchers will be conducting a survey of the native birds and insects that pollinate gardens to investigate the impact of urbanisation.Ecologist from CSU's School of Environmental Sciences, Dr Dale Nimmo said, "As Albury is expanding and its population is increasing, it's important to understand how this impacts biodiversity, including those species that occur in the heart of the city."The project, which will have CSU researchers walking Albury's streets in search of native birds and pollinators, is part of a wider study looking at the best way to grow regional cities while minimising the impact on biodiversity."To help protect biodiversity in cities as they expand, there are two options. 'Land sharing' happens when people are spread thinly in low-density 'leafy' suburbs, which allow species to occur within urban areas" Dr Nimmo said."On the other hand, 'Land sparing' dedicates some areas for high density housing and other parts for large-scale biodiversity conservation, such as nature reserves"."We want to see if the best way to conserve our biodiversity is land sharing, land sparing or a combination of both."The project will look at birds and pollinator insects as these two groups of animals can respond differently to urban environments.Ecologist from CSU's Institute for Land Water and Society, Dr Manu Saunders said, "There've been very few studies done on pollinator insects in Australia's urban areas. But urban gardens can actually be great habitats for native bees and other pollinator insects, provided they have lots of different flowers and low pesticide use." The research has been funded by a CSU Sustainability Research Seed Grant, through CSU Green and the WH Gladstones Population and Environment Fund.The bird and pollinator surveys will run from January until mid-2017

The highly regarded Charles Sturt University (CSU) Leadership Development for Women (LDW) conference is being held over two days on Monday 21 and Tuesday November 22 2016 in Wagga Wagga.More than 80 women are expected to attend with this year's theme being 'Leading with Integrity'.CSU LDW Steering Committee Chair Associate Professor Rosemary Black said the conference couldn't come at a more appropriate time."Issues of equity in universities cannot be seen in isolation from the changes in governance and operation of universities in the past three decades with all staff experiencing changes," Associate Professor Black said."The rapid changes towards an entrepreneurial climate and market orientation of universities that focuses on measurable and marketable consumer satisfaction, performance outcomes of students and staff and international rankings have brought changes in the nature of employment and employment conditions."If the UK experience is any indication it's likely that these new labour regimes will be highly gendered, seriously disadvantaging women in areas such as contracts, conditions, promotions and pay."Associate Professor Black added that these changes and the changes to come in universities, mean that an ongoing focus on gender equity is needed as each new change brings fresh equity challenges."While there's no one policy change or magic bullet that can be nominated to 'fix' gender inequity, the work and initiatives of the Leadership Development for Women Committee such as the conference and the Leadership Development for Women Program are important and effective ways of supporting and developing leadership among all women within Charles Sturt University, as well encouraging a cultural change within the organisation."Keynote speaker at the conference is Dr Leslie Cannold who is an educator and trainer in inspirational leadership, gender equity and respectful relationships.Dr Cannold is an award-winning columnist and is often described as one of Australia's leading public thinkers.She's been named alongside Professor Peter Singer, Professor Gustav Nossal and Inga Clendinnen as one of Australia's top 20 public intellectuals and was named by the Power Index as among the Top Ten most influential thinkers.Other speakers include economist and Chair of Regional Development Australia - Riverina, Ms Diana Gibbs along with media commentator and comedian Ms George McEncroe who is the guest speaker at the conference dinner on Monday night.Described by friends as "Geraldine Doogue meets Roseanne Barr", Ms McEncroe has had an interesting life journey from which she draws her viewpoints, including working for a War Crimes Tribunal, caring for teenage boys with muscular dystrophy, being a mother of four, and teaching English in Istanbul.Over two days, conference delegates will examine how to build a network; establish stories in supporting and developing female staff; consider leading strategically in an ethical way and influencing with integrity.

A best practice childcare centre planned for the Bathurst Campus of Charles Sturt University (CSU) “would boost our early childhood education profile and be of benefit not just for the professionals in the field, but for our students as well,” according to Lynda Ireland, lecturer in the School of Teacher Education. The play area is to be designed collaboratively between the School of Teacher Education, Mitchell Childcare Centre and leading outdoor environment designer, Prue Walsh. Ms Walsh, an early childhood playground consultant and long time advocate for better play environments says “we’ve never had more exciting research available about what happens in early childhood centres. IQ is no longer rated as the main skill, socio-emotional skills are”. She says that repeated evidence shows positive childcare environments support children’s social and emotional development. “Children who have good social and emotional development go on to develop less drug addiction, fewer teenage pregnancies, are more likely to stick to university, and have more capacity and resilience to cope and adapt to the changes in life.” Annabelle Hillsdon, a tutor in the School of Communication, has children at the centre and is driving the fund-raising effort for construction of the facility. Ms Hillsdon says currently teachers and centre directors travel to Sydney to see Australia’s best childcare play environment. “So the idea is that we build the regional best practice, so people from Warren, Trangie, Trundle, instead of going to Sydney, they come to CSU.” Work is due to start this July.

The 1948 classic film The Snake Pit will be screened at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Bathurst on Tuesday 13 October as part of Mental Health Month. Hosted by the University's School of Nursing, Midwifery and Indigenous Health, the movie is based on the semi-autobiographic novel by Mary Jane Ward. It is about a woman who finds herself in an insane asylum and cannot recall how she got there. Adjunct CSU Professor for Mental Health Nursing Louise O'Brien and Ms Tania Naven from the Hearing Voices Network will be special guests at the screening. They will be part of an expert panel discussion after the movie. Snake Pit will be screened from 2pm to 4.30pm at the Ponton Theatre at CSU in Bathurst. Entry is a gold coin donation for Daffodil Cottage in Bathurst.

CSU Local News is online now. Visit news.csu.edu.au for local news from CSU in:Albury-WodongaBathurstCanberraDubboGoulburnOrangePort MacquarieWagga WaggaOr read previous updates in our local news archive.

Dubbo native Ms Bethany Simons is coming home to perform her award-winning show, Reception: The Musical¸ at the Dubbo Regional Theatre Convention Centre on Friday night, 24 October. The performance is part of the 2014 Macquarie Credit Union DREAM Festival. Ms Simons, a Charles Sturt University Bachelor of Arts (Acting for the Screen and Stage) graduate, is based in Melbourne but was born and raised in Dubbo. She studied at CSU in Wagga, and her latest show – a cabaret-style comedy collaboration with pianist Peter de Jager – was awarded Best Cabaret at the 2014 Melbourne Fringe Festival Awards.  Reception is a celebration of all things administration, telling the story of a receptionist who finds joy in the manic world of customer service. After the show, the audience is invited to join the cast for an 'office party' in the foyer to celebrate International Year of the Secretary and Administrative Assistant. Reception: The Musical is supported by Essential Energy.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will host a public seminar on Monday 2 February which will discuss predators and their role in controlling crop pests.University of Kentucky Associate Professor of Arthropod Ecology James Harwood will present the seminar as part of a three day visit to CSU during which he will be collaborating on research with CSU academics.Professor Harwood has been studying predators, especially spiders, and their role in controlling crop pests for over a decade. In this seminar Professor Harwood will explain the use of behavioural and molecular approaches to understand the interactions between predators and their prey, revealing aspects of their hunting strategies"Ultimately, this knowledge helps to reduce reliance on insecticides for pest control and enhance the sustainability of agriculture," Professor Geoff Gurr from the CSU School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences said."This seminar will be informative for members of the public who would like to hear about developments in this area and are interested in pest management and sustainable agriculture."The Seminar will be held in the conference room of the Orange campus, Leeds Parade, Orange at 1pm on Monday 2 January. No RSVP is necessary.