“At a time of unprecedented global ecological degradation, I believe popular television has a responsibility to educate audiences about environmental issues,” says Bruce Fell, a lecturer with Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Communication. He has spent two years interviewing Australian television executives, producers, directors, scriptwriters and performers as part of PhD thesis. Bruce will present some of his findings in Melbourne at the upcoming CSU Alumni event, Tell me about the environment. “My work looked at who are the most influential people in television when it comes to communicating with the audience. I discovered that the stars of soap opera and drama had the most influence. Fans mimic the stars purchasing habits, fashion, language, and indeed what the stars strive for in life. In a way, the TV stars are part of our new religion, they are the people we admire and worship — they lead, we follow.”

According to Head of Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Rural Management Professor Kevin Parton, “animal production is a high priority,” at the Orange Campus where, this Friday, the Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) will hold its More Beef from Pastures Regional Expo. CSU is an inland university offering courses that give practical solutions to agricultural management. “The Meat and Livestock Authority has over 40 000 livestock producer members and to be able to work alongside them and discuss CSU’s cattle production and management teaching in our Agricultural Business Management degree is an important part of our collaboration with industry. We look forward to presenting our courses to the participants at this Expo,” Professor Parton said. There will be up to 200 people attending the event including over 150 primary producers. The MLA More Beef from Pastures program offers practical information, guidelines and tools in eight key areas of business. The Expo, to be held at the Machinery Centre, CSU Orange Campus this Friday 27 October.

When Friends of Woodstock (FOW) wanted to increase their capacity to understand the needs of their clients and address those needs more appropriately, they turned to Charles Sturt University (CSU). FOW is an Albury-based non-profit organisation which supports people with disabilities and their families, predominately young people and children, by providing early intervention and care services. Earlier this month, FOW signed an MoU with CSU’s School of Community Health. Head of the School Associate Professor Julia Coyle says the MoU will work on several levels. “As well as FOW supporting the teaching of respite care with the nursing students, we have the clinical education honours projects set up for next year, so we hope to have a team of honours students working with them then. There will also be professional development between our academics and their clinicians, and we are undertaking research projects that are of importance to them. That is something we are doing in the School quite consistently, changing our research focus to be much more community driven.”

Leaders of the Australian cattle industry led by David Inall, Executive Director of the Cattle Council of Australia and Dr Gardner Murray Chief Veterinary Officer of Australia will join NSW veterinarians and cattle producers to attend the official opening of Charles Sturt University’s new cattle yards, which are part of the University’s new veterinary sciences building.  “The yards provide progressive teaching facilities for veterinary students and are the envy of other veterinary schools”, said CSU Professor of Veterinary Reproduction Peter Chenoweth. “They are very well designed units which allow easy animal movement and restraint for veterinary procedures, all under cover, well lit and well protected from the weather.” The yards include a hydraulic squeeze crush with electronic weigh and data download capabilities; automatic drafting gates operated manually or by electronic recognition of weight; six offset crushes for securing animals for such procedures as pregnancy testing; and a hut for basic laboratory procedures. The yards will be opened at 3.30pm on Saturday 28 October on the University’s Wagga Wagga Campus, immediately before the inaugural Charles Sturt Veterinary Foundation Dinner.    

Charles Sturt University’s Occupational Therapy staff often say occupational therapists (OT) are “experts in doing”, so a day of action seems an appropriate way to promote the profession. Student members of Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) OT Club will promote the profession to the Albury-Wodonga community with a day of action that coincides with International OT Day on Friday 27 October. “Occupational therapists aim to help people perform activities that are meaningful and important to the individual and the community, which includes rehabilitation,” said OT Club representative Catherine Umina. During the lunchtime event, students will provide information on occupational therapy and what the profession offers as well as a free barbeque and giveaways between 11.30am and 2pm in QEII Square on Dean St, Albury.

Winemaker Vikki Fischer is already taking out awards after graduating from Charles Sturt University (CSU) last year. Vicki’s Kardinia 2006 Riesling won the ACT Chief Minister’s award for the best Riesling for the Canberra district at the recent 2006 Hyatt International Riesling Challenge. Director of the National Wine and Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) and CSU Professor of Oenology Geoff Scollary said the University played a significant role in the Challenge, with wine science and viticulture students and the CSU Winery assistant winemaker acting as stewards for the tasting program, while NWGIC experimental winemaker, Emily Rouse, was Associate Chief Steward. Professor Scollary also convened the event’s Winemakers’ Seminar, which he said is an important part of the University’s outreach to the wine industry and assists with the ongoing training of winemakers.

Veterinary issues concerning the Australian cattle industry including trade risks and maintaining export markets in light of animal disease and public health threats will be the focus of a speech by Australian Cattle Council Executive Director Mr David Inall. Mr Inall will join former Chief Veterinary Officer of Australia Dr Gardner Murray in addressing industry representatives and regional practitioners at the inaugural Charles Sturt Veterinary Foundation Dinner on Saturday 28 October in Wagga Wagga.  The Charles Sturt University (CSU) veterinary program’s multi-million dollar capital works projects will be a feature discussion topic at the dinner, with plans currently underway for a Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory to support livestock producers and veterinarians in the region, as well as facilitate training for veterinary undergraduate and postgraduate students in diagnostic procedures. “The dinner provides an opportunity to discuss the course, its particular characteristics and its educational and research directions with the veterinary community and build the networks crucial to ensuring the success of the program and our graduates,” says CSU’s Director of Veterinary Science Professor Kym Abbott. The dinner will be held in 6pm Boorooma Auditorium, CSU Wagga Wagga Campus.

Trainee primary science teachers from Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) Murray School of Education (MSE) are making science fun for local school children. Each year CSU students take “practical science activities” to a host school, according to John Rafferty, a lecturer with the School of Education. “Walbundrie Primary School is hosting this year as part of their Small Schools Cluster ongoing commitment to innovation and five schools are coming in by bus. There will be 11 activities in all, with children working with undergraduate teachers on interesting and practical science issues such as a volcano and solar ovens made out of pizza boxes in which they cook little biscuits. It is just a really good example of trainee teachers in the field working with schools with University support. This idea that you go away to university for four years and come out as teachers is a myth, the CSU students are involved with schools the whole time, and the local schools have a big say in their development.”

Jane Caldwell, a Charles Sturt University (CSU) PhD candidate enrolled through the School of Clinical Sciences, has been awarded a Certificate of Merit at the 4th Annual Victorian Government State Nursing Excellence Awards. Her supervisors, Dr Elaine Dietsch and Dr Sandi Mackey, are full of praise for Jane’s work. “It is a very, very prestigious award. Jane’s PhD thesis is looking at parenting strengths in vulnerable families, so she is doing it from a positive perspective. In regard to the two thousand dollars she won, she said ‘that will buy heaps of things for the families I visit’. She is highly esteemed by colleagues as well as the families she works with,” said Dr Dietsch. Jane Caldwell describes those families as “great people. They are fabulous families. They don’t have a lot, they don’t have material things but they are rich people in what they give back.”