Central Queensland University is celebrating 20 years of teaching nursing this year.

Since its first induction of nursing students, CQU has produced some outstanding nurses many of whom are now working in clinical positions in Central Queensland, as nursing directors in major hospitals or as influential academics in nursing and health faculties.

A Central Queensland University researcher says there is still hope for rehabilitation of one of Australia's most polluted rivers.

Since the 1890s, acid run-off and solid waste from the Mt Morgan open cut gold mine site in Central Queensland have contaminated the Dee River, destroying over 40km of natural stream ecosystems.

A study into people management issues in the Bowen Basin's coalmines has now been completed by a team of CQU researchers, consisting of Professor John Rolfe, Associate Professor Lee Di Milia and Dr Connie Zheng.

The study is significant as it identifies a series of human resource management challenges currently facing the region's most important industry - coal mining.

Pam Shakespeare, the Professor of Practice Based Open Learning at the UK Open University, shared her experience on flexible learning and teaching enviroments with CQU staff on July 3-4.

The Open University was the world's first successful distance teaching university.