Up to 200 adults and 100 youths are expected to converge on Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Sunday 30 January to compete in the second Come and Try Triathlon. The event is run by the Wagga Triants Triathlon Club and aims to introduce newcomers to the sport, but also provides serious competitors with a challenging event. Event organiser, Mr Stephen Trevaskis received very positive feedback from previous race competitors. He believes that the CSU campus provides a safe option for the younger competitors, and that the popularity of the event is likely due to setting slightly shorter distances which make it more accessible for beginners. Mr Trevaskis expressed appreciation for the support from CSU and the efforts of Manager of Campus Services, Mr Terry O’Meara, and his team, for preparations for this year’s event.

The Evocities campaign has been described as a useful tool for recruitment by Charles Sturt University (CSU) Director of Human Resources Partnerships, Ms Jennie Anderson. Launched in September 2010, the promotion of Evocities - centres of Energy, Vision and Opportunity (EVO) - encourages capital city residents to make the move to an Evocity and invest in the opportunities the cities offer. The Evocities include Albury, Armidale, Bathurst, Dubbo, Orange, Tamworth and Wagga Wagga. “Charles Sturt University has campuses in five of the seven Evocities so it made sense for the University to become a supporter of this campaign,” Ms Anderson said. “The Evocities campaign includes a website where interested parties can find out more about each city and look for jobs in that area. It’s a great recruitment tool but also a useful link for those who haven’t lived in the area before and want to find out more about each city.”

Theatre/Media students at Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) School of Communication will stage a production of the classic Greek tragedy Medea, by Euripides, at the Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre (BMEC) from Thursday 7 to Saturday 9 June. Twenty five third year students are involved as cast and crew for the production which is being directed by CSU lecturer Ms Annabel Scholes. “Medea was first performed in 431BC and I chose it because of its timeless relevance to modern audiences,” Ms Scholes said. “Medea is a tragedy, a story of betrayal and terrible revenge. It is a challenging script for the actors, and because no copyright applies, it allows us to modernise and retell the story in an innovative way. With support from industry professionals, students produce the entire show, including set design, costume, sound, lighting, stage management, production management, assistant directing, multimedia and publicity.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) Internet Marketing students will pitch their internet marketing plan to Bathurst Regional Council (BRC) next week. Victoria Jackson, BRC’s manager of marketing and communication, says BRC has launched two new web sites. “This is really just a starting point - you have to get the look and feel right. After that it is about how we manage those sites. So we are tapping into where the students are – at the forefront of what is going on in the industry. They are looking for a project, and we are just starting out – it is a nice synchronicity.” Andrew Mashman from CSU’s School of Marketing and Management says the class has been broken into eight teams working on two briefs. “The first is focusing on attracting more tourists to Bathurst for short and medium term stays, while the second is looking at bringing investment to the town.”

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will host the 2009 Education for Sustainability Conference at the Bathurst Campus on Friday 30 October, with a second optional day on Saturday 31 October. Conference co-organiser, Ms Jan Page, from the CSU School of Teacher Education at Bathurst, said the event will focus on how individuals and families can live more sustainably by growing food in kitchen gardens at schools and in the wider community, and is intended for educators from pre-school to tertiary level and members of the Bathurst regional community. “Food is the largest component of many individuals’ ecological footprints, so growing your own food not only helps to address health issues but also develops knowledge and skills to reduce our environmental footprint and foster sustainable living,” Ms Page said. The conference is being staged in conjunction with the Bathurst Community Climate Action Network (BCCAN), and will include a keynote address by Ms Ange Barry, CEO of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation. There will be a number of presentations, including one by Ms Rachel Conolan, a parent with children at South Bathurst Public School, speaking about the school’s community garden.

Researchers from Charles Sturt University (CSU) will hold a number of focus groups in Cowra in March so that residents aged 60 years and over can share their experiences of what is it like to live in a rural community as they get older. Dr Rhonda Shaw and Ms Judith Gullifer, lecturers from the CSU School of Psychology in Bathurst, argue that it is important to understand what it is like to grow older in rural communities like Cowra to gain a more complete picture of ageing in Australia. “Too often research about ageing is conducted using samples from metropolitan areas, and issues or views raised from this research are assumed to apply across rural, regional and remote areas,” Dr Shaw said. “This is a metro-centric perspective of ageing which places emphasis on averages across states or territories rather than on the needs and views of specific communities. This is despite evidence that non-metropolitan areas have older age profiles than metropolitan areas, which is, in part, due to a process that has become known as a ‘tree change’, whereby many older adults from metropolitan areas migrate to rural areas in their retirement.” Cowra residents aged over 60 years who wish to participate in the research can contact Dr Rhonda Shaw on (02) 6338 4826.

A grassroots energy saving project conducted in the School of Education at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga has reached its halfway mark, with preliminary results showing substantial cuts in electricity use. Energy use has been reduced over a two-week period by between 16 per cent and as much as 74 per cent, with an average reduction per staff member of 37 per cent. “While energy-savvy, many of the 16 participants have been surprised by the amount of energy that can be saved by simply switching off a power point,” said the project’s leader, Ms Barbara Conlan. “We also hope to raise student awareness about the energy saving, which will hopefully encourage energy saving behaviour within the education institutions in which they will work.” Mr William Adlong, Manager of CSU Green, which coordinates the grant scheme, said, “The University aims to reduce its energy consumption by 10 per cent and to reduce its water use by 25 per cent by 2011. Initiatives such as this project will help us reach these targets."

Charles Sturt University (CSU) will be one of three universities to provide senior high school students in Dubbo with the chance to discover more about university life and potential career paths when the Regional University Road Show comes to town on Thursday 4 March. Dubbo Senior College will host one of the road show events, which career advisor, Mrs Denise Latta, describes as a wonderful opportunity for local students. “A large percentage of Dubbo school graduates complete their tertiary education at regional universities and this is a chance to hear from three different universities in the one session. This enables them to consider a number of options for future study,” Mrs Latta said. “Often regional students have difficulty attending university open days, so here the universities come to the students. The sessions are very informative and give lots of time for questions about both the study options and the admissions process."

Senior high school students in Orange will get the chance to discover more about university life and potential career paths when Charles Sturt University (CSU) and others bring the Regional University Road Show to town on Friday 5 March. Orange Christian School will host one of the Road Show events, which career advisor Mrs Melissa Brown describes as a wonderful opportunity for her students, as well as students from other local high schools. “A large percentage of Orange school graduates complete their tertiary education at regional universities and this is a chance to hear from three different universities in the one session, which enables them to consider a number of options for future study,” Mrs Brown says. The sessions are informative and provide ample time for questions about both study options and the admissions process.