North Ryde. Wireless communication

The Science and Industry Endowment Fund together with Macquarie University has funded the chair in Wireless Communications with the aim of facilitating world leading research in wireless communications through collaboration between CSIRO and the University. The inaugural chair is Dr Stephen Hanly. Dr Hanly said the new Chair had its origins in highly successful collaborations between the CSIRO ICT Centre and the Electronic Engineering Department at Macquarie University in the area of wireless communications. Deputy vice-chancellor (research) at Macquarie University, Professor Jim Piper, said Dr Hanly's appointment would continue a strong tradition of innovation in wireless research at the university.

Blue Mountains. Tourism trade mission

Representatives of the Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism, Scenic World Blue Mountains, Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa and Accor, which has hotels in Western Sydney, are attending a Tourism Australia-led trade mission to India from August 25 – 28. “The operators will have the opportunity to meet up to 40 key buyers and travel trade decision makers from key Indian markets including the main cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Ahmedebad, and Pune,” Destination NSW, executive director – tourism, Lyndel Gray, said.

Region. Shopping centre additions

Knight Frank’s NSW Retail Market Overview, for August, notes the imminent completion of the extension of Stockland Merrylands as the only major retail development under construction within the metropolitan area. Forthcoming major retail shopping centre projects in the pipeline likely to commence by 2012 consist of Queensland Investment Corporation’s 61,000-square-metre extension to the Castle Towers Shopping Centre and AMP/Westfield’s, 35,000-square-metre expansion of the Macquarie Centre.