Child Welfare Services has announced the next orientation for people interested in foster parenting or adopting children under the protection of the agency. The meeting will be Aug. 15 from 6-9 p.m. at the agency’s offices, 260 N. San Antonio Rd.

There are currently more than 600 children in the care of Child Welfare Services, and loving, stable homes are still needed for many of them according to Anne Rodriguez, foster parent recruiter for the county.

A new Foster Parent Information Line has been established at 866-899-2649, and frequently asked questions and schedules of future classes for potential foster parents can be accessed at www.sbcsocialservices.org.

Town Hall meetings on mental health workers

Two town hall meetings have been scheduled for public input into county funding priorities for education and training of public mental health service providers. Roughly $1.14 million has been allocated for Santa Barbara County for fiscal year 2007-08, through the state’s Mental Health Services Act, for addressing staffing shortages in public mental health.

The meetings will be Aug. 14 at 2:30 and 6:30 p.m. at the Goleta Valley Community Center, 5679 Hollister Ave. For more information, call 681-5287 or go to www.admhs.org.

Anti-nuclear conference

A “Think Outside the Bomb,” national conference for more than 100 young activists from around the country, sponsored by the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, will take place at UCSB August 16-19.

The conference is taking place amid ongoing U.S. efforts to develop new nuclear weapons, escalating tensions over Iran’s nuclear program and the possible expansion of the nuclear power industry.