Middlebury Institute of International Studies presents the Environmental Justice & Sustainability Speaker Series, addressing issues of environmental policy, social and environmental justice, and ocean sustainability. All lectures, held online through Zoom, are free and open to the public.

Join us and be inspired by forward-thinking speakers who present cutting-edge solutions to complex problems across a wide variety of fields. Please click on the links below for Zoom login information and details on each talk.

November 5, 12:30pm
Sustainability, Systems Thinking and Well-being – Giving Voice to Data
Mr. Minal Mistry

November 10, 6pm
Fish & Chips: Tracking Tunas and Sharks in our Blue Serengeti
Dr. Barbara Block

November 17, 6pm
Equitable Collaboration for the Caribbean Blue Economy
Veta N. Wade

December 1, 6pm
Integrating Environmental Justice into Coastal Management: Opportunities, Challenges, and Lessons Learned
Clesi Bennett

December 3, 12:30pm
Reimagining our Economy through Restorative Economics
Nwamaka Agbo

We are sad to report that Steve Smith, a much-beloved long-time employee of Carpets & Floors on Lighthouse Avenue in Monterey, has sustained a serious brain injury and is in serious condition in the hospital. He is the sole provider for his four young children and wife, and may not be able to work for quite some time.

His friends attest to the fact that Steve has always been a person who tries to help other people in need. You may have met him outside Carpets & Floors during the Lighthouse District Children's Trick-or-Treat - he always has kindness and a smile for all the kids who stop by. His friends have set up a GoFundMe campaign to try and help him and his family financially. If you are able at this time, please consider making a donation.

Great news, nacho fans: Nacho Bizness is now open at 470 Alvarado Street in Downtown Old Monterey! That's right, they've left Lighthouse Avenue in New Monterey and relocated to the center of the known [Monterey] universe. They now have a fun, newly redecorated restaurant where they're slinging piping hot 'chos and burritos for take-out. It's the ultimate pandemic comfort food.

Nacho Bizness makes their own cheese sauces (both dairy and vegan), pico de gallo, and guacamole in house from scratch, and they only use Taco Works chips, made in San Luis Obispo. Gluten free options abound! All take-out packaging is green certified. Open Sunday - Monday, 11am-7pm, and Tuesday - Saturday, 11am-10pm. Come on down and find your bliss.

Monterey Bay Food Tours Marketplace is holding a pop-up shop, November 1-7, at the newly-opened Franklin Street Collaborative, 201 Franklin Street in Downtown Old Monterey. Come check out all the local artisan food and gifts on offer! Open Tue & Thu, 10am-4pm, and Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, 11am-6pm.

Items will include Big Sur Sea Salts, jams and jellies from Happy Girl Kitchen, Foustman's salami, elderberry syrup from Carmel Berry Co., Holy Granola from the New Camaldoli Hermitage, Etto Pastificio pasta, stuffed olives from The Joseph Boston Store, and much more.

Union Yoga is offering short, 20-minute online meditation and breathwork classes led by Kelli Grey, November 2-24. Held Tuesdays and Thursdays on Zoom at three alternative times (6:15am, 8:15am, and 7:30pm), you can attend twice a week at whichever times work best for you.

Each 20 minute session offers a few minutes of instruction followed by practice and the option to join a short conversation and connection afterward. No prior experience is necessary. Fee is $30 for the series. Register online today.

These ongoing sessions are simple and varied, offering different types of breathwork and meditation based on the time of day, month, and group interest. The series aims to support your practice by helping you stay accountable, sitting together in a group via Zoom in the comfort of your home.

You in 2019: What an amazing and fun Halloween photo!

You in 2020: OMG the crowd and no masks... won't be able to sleep tonight!

In case it needs to be said, we will not be having our annual Halloween Trick or Treat in Downtown Campbell this year due to the pandemic, but we’ll celebrate by posting some of our favorite Halloween photos from years past for the entire week of Halloween on the DowntownCampbell Facebook Page and the @DowntownCampbellCA Instagram Page.

If you’ve been to our Halloweens before, look through your stash of pics and join in the fun by replying to our daily posts with some of your past favorite costumes that you've spotted in Downtown Campbell.

In the kitchen at Montrio Bistro, our staff is working their magic turning fresh, locally-procured ingredients into new, creative menu additions this fall. Below is a sneak preview of some of what's new on the menu, which complement our unchanged, tried-and-true year-round customer favorites.

F1 Wagyu Beef (2 oz.)
with grilled local figs, green tea jalapeño gastrique, almond brittle

Venison Loin
rolled in Spanish onion ash, crispy truffle risotto, celeriac puree, reconstituted cherry glaze, pickled apples

Octopus Carpaccio
with late season plum vinaigrette, fire-roasted shishito peppers, smoked pear aioli, grilled bread

Montrio Bistro, located at 414 Calle Principal, is now open for take-out, curbside pick-up, delivery, and outdoor dining.

Come on out and join us this weekend. Patios and parklets will be open and so long as the infection rate in Santa Clara County remains modest, there’s limited indoor dining and entertainment open as well.

Under our current infection level, bars can now operate outdoors without requiring food purchase and entertainment venues like LvL Up arcade are allowed to open at reduced capacities.

Remember that just because something is allowed does not mean it is entirely safe. Precautions are certainly enacted to make all indoor services as safe as possible, but we’re still counting on you to wear masks correctly and think about your safety, our safety, and the safety of everyone you pass on the street.

Make smart choices and assume that anyone you encounter outside of your home is potentially contagious if you want our dining rooms and other indoor activities to remain available.

Thanks for riding out these crazy times with us.

On Tuesday, October 20, 2020, it was announced by the California Department of Public Health that all personal care services across the state are permitted to offer their services indoors. This includes estheticians and skin care spas, electrology, nail salons, tattoo parlors, piercing shops, and massage therapy.

You're invited to call to your favorite Monterey personal care services provider and make an appointment, but please be patient. This announcement was unexpected, and it may take our fine professionals a couple of days to prepare their businesses to reopen. We thank you for supporting our small, locally-owned businesses.

To learn more about the State of California's Blueprint for a Safer Economy, and to learn what's permitted in Monterey County at this moment according to the Blueprint, please click here.

On Tuesday, October 20, 2020, it was announced by the California Department of Public Health that all personal care services across the state are permitted to offer their services indoors. This includes estheticians and skin care spas, electrology, nail salons, tattoo parlors, piercing shops, and massage therapy.

You're invited to call to your favorite Monterey personal care services provider and make an appointment, but please be patient. This announcement was unexpected, and it may take our fine professionals a couple of days to prepare their businesses to reopen. We thank you for supporting our small, locally-owned businesses.

To learn more about the State of California's Blueprint for a Safer Economy, and to learn what's permitted in Monterey County at this moment according to the Blueprint, please click here.