With assistance of a $50 000 grant from the Federal Department of Education, Science and Technology (DEST), a Charles Sturt University (CSU) PhD student who is visiting Albury this week is helping Malaysia develop community-based speech and language services to be available to all its citizens. CSU student Sandra Van Dort said Malaysia’s speech pathology services are currently only available to people who can afford private clinics or who live near major hospitals in large Malaysian cities. “I am investigating how, together with groups such as children with affected speech, their parents, speech pathology students, speech pathologists, universities and the broader Malaysian community, these services can be provided throughout the country.” The CSU researcher and her supervisor, Associate Professor Lindy Mcallister, will meet next week with Ms Denise Miles from New South Global, which manages the Endeavour Asia Awards for DEST.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic Dr Rebecca Doyle will give a first-hand account of her chosen career in science during the national ABARES Outlook 2013 conference at the National Convention Centre in Canberra on Tuesday 5 and Wednesday 6 March. Dr Doyle, a lecturer in animal physiology and welfare in the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga, will address the forum, Science and education for agriculture, fisheries and forestry in the Barton Room at  4pm Tuesday 5 March.. During her talk, titled 'Science is golden: my experiences in agriculture', the CSU academic will detail her thoughts on why there aren't enough people entering agricultural professions, how we can improve this, and give some examples of scientific work she has been involved in. Dr Doyle said, "I think that one of the reasons students aren't so attracted to agricultural-based degrees is because they aren't aware of the career opportunities on offer. Unlike other degrees, students enrolling in agricultural science degrees don't know what they can 'be' at the end of it, but at the same time, these degrees are more specialised than an arts or general science degree. Hopefully, by giving students examples of what career paths they can take, we will encourage more students to study agriculture." Read more about Dr Doyle on CSU News here. You can read the full Outlook 2013 conference program here.

Two researchers from Charles Sturt University (CSU) want to learn more about what the residents of Thurgoona and Wirlinga on the north-east edge of Albury know and understand about conservation and the plants and animals that live in the area. Dr Rosemary Black and Dr Shelby Laird from CSU’s Institute for Land, Water and Society will distribute a postal survey to households in these suburbs, starting Wednesday 6 March. “The Thurgoona and Wirlinga areas are expected to grow to over 50 000 people in the next 30 years, and will become a more urban environment,” Dr Black said. “This will impact on the area’s native animals and the flora they depend on, particularly threatened species. We are investigating this community’s knowledge and values about nature and conservation before changes occur and before any projects or education initiatives are conducted. This is a very rare opportunity for us as researchers to gather this information.” The postal survey will be followed by interviews with some residents to gather more data that could be used to develop better conservation projects in the future. “Finding out what people know about nature and conservation in Thurgoona and Wirlinga will help conservation organisations like the Albury Conservation Company, as well as state and local governments, to better plan their future conservation activities,” Dr Laird said.

Students studying agricultural and animal sciences and horticulture at Western Illinois University (WIU) in the United States will visit Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Tuesday 12 March. The 12 students will inspect CSU facilities including the National Life Sciences Hub, Equine Centre, and Veterinary Clinical Centre from 10am to 12 noon when the Head of the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences, Professor John Mawson, will host a barbecue for the international guests, staff, and third and fourth year agricultural science students from CSU. On Wednesday 13 and Thursday 14 March, the students will visit a rice farm at Leeton, and a sheep stud, orchard and winery at Griffith. Accompanying the students will be CSU’s Emeritus Professor Ted Wolfe and WIU’s Associate Professor Tom Bruening (International Agriculture). “Students from Western Illinois University visited Charles Sturt University in 2009 and 2011. Over previous years, three of our students have studied at Western Illinois University for a semester and we have hosted two students as part of international exchanges. The Riverina is a wonderful setting for agriculture. I encourage the farmers and local agribusinesses we visit to 'tell it like it is' in terms of family farm stories, industry issues such as finding good quality labour, the difficulty of coping with climatic and marketing risks, the ongoing water debate, and the problems caused by the high Australian dollar,” Professor Wolfe said.

As the Orange Campus celebrates new beginnings with Charles Sturt University, spring is also being celebrated on the Campus with the birth of the first CSU Orange foal for 2006. The black colt was delivered in the early hours of Saturday morning 16 September. The colt has joined the greatly expanded equine course at CSU, with extensive facilties at Orange joining those on the Wagga Wagga Campus. “The colt’s grandsire is a renowned European dressage stallion, so he is quite a ‘special little man’ and he seems to know that already,” says Equine Centre Manager Cheryl Gander.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is expanding the number of student Accommodation Residences as a major initiative in response to demand from prospective students and their families. CSU’s acting Executive Director of Student Services, Andrew Callander said the University is planning to substantially increase the number of beds available for students and to increase the variety and type of accommodation available. Initially CSU will add around 170 beds by 2009 on all its major campuses: Albury-Wodonga Campus: 48 new beds to come onto the Thurgoona site; Bathurst Campus: Four eight-bed cottages to open by February 2007; Dubbo Campus: Fully commissioning of new student accommodation totalling 62 places; Orange Campus: Converted cottages for 20 students on the CSU Orange Campus; Wagga Wagga Campus: Two eight-bed cottages to come on stream by February each year from 2007 to 2009. A 20-bed complex using funds from a bequest to the University will be built in 2007. “We are also planning for a large scale project to add 600 new beds to meet increasing demand for on-campus accommodation on our Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst and Wagga Wagga campuses,” Mr Callander said. The project will expand the range of accommodation offered and take the total beds available for students on campus at CSU to around 3 000.

A forum hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Orange will review Australia’s position within the Asian trade arena, especially Japan and China. Expert speakers, including keynote speaker and Australia’s Japanese Consul General Tsukasa Kawada, will provide up-to-date assessments of economic developments and trade opportunities in Asia. Head of CSU Orange Campus, Professor Kevin Parton, believes the forum encapsulates the University’s strong relationship with Asia. “The Asia Today forum highlights our continuing research and tour visits to Asia and provides a great opportunity for companies and entrepreneurs to review Australia’s trade performance with Asia with the intention of trading with the region.” Issues to be covered will range from a consideration of the general growth prospects in Japan and China through to detailed case studies on how to get started in exporting. The Asia Today forum runs from 9am to 2pm on Friday 22 September. The Orange forum complements an international academic business conference also hosted by CSU that focuses on trade with China, being held on 21 and 22 September in the NSW Blue Mountains > see more.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Port Macquarie will welcome approximately 200 new students to its 2013 orientation events on Thursday 28 February and Friday 1 March before the start of the new academic year next Monday. Dr Muyesser Durur, the Campus Director at CSU in Port Macquarie, said, “It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since Charles Sturt University in Port Macquarie was established, and I am delighted to welcome new and returning students. The University now offers eight courses by Schools in three Faculties (Arts, Business, Science) as we progress our aim to enrol 5 000 students here by 2030. Charles Sturt University staff from other locations will attend the orientation in Port Macquarie to provide a wider University perspective, expertise and experience to enrich the orientation experience.” The schedule of orientation events includes a formal welcome at 2pm Thursday 28, followed by an afternoon tea for parents and supporters hosted by the Head of Campus, Professor Ross Chambers. Tours of the campus, and library and student support information sessions will run between 3pm to 5.15pm. This will be followed by an academic advisory session about Schools and courses from 5.30pm to 6.30pm. Local businesses and community groups will also showcase their wares to the students at a market stall alongside the information sessions. General assistance for students continues to be available from 9am to 5pm on Friday 1 March. A student function has been scheduled for Thursday 7 March to kick-start the student social calendar for 2013 – an important component of the CSU experience.

People with Parkinson’s disease or rheumatoid arthritis are invited to take part in research at Charles Sturt University (CSU) to investigate the role of red blood cells in neutralising free radicals, chemicals derived from breaking down oxygen in the blood that can damage the body. CSU PhD student with the School of Community Health, Ms Di Hughes, is looking at the shape and biochemistry of red blood cells which are critical for delivering oxygen to the body. “Cell shape is affected by oxidative stress, which is the balance between free radicals and antioxidants which neutralise free radicals. We want to study the levels of antioxidants, free radicals and resulting inflammation in people with these diseases,” Ms Hughes said. “Ultimately, this research could help understand the role of oxidative stress and antioxidants in Parkinson's disease and rheumatoid arthritis.” After an initial discussion with Ms Hughes, which includes a medical questionnaire, accepted participants can attend the Health Skills ward at Thurgoona to give blood and urine samples which will be analysed for free radicals, antioxidants and the shape of red blood cells.