L.A. Times - Environment

G-8 pledges $20 billion to fight world hunger after appeal from Obama

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:13:00 -0700

At the end of the Group of 8 summit, President Obama says the leading industrialized nations made progress on climate change and nuclear nonproliferation. Afterward, he visits Pope Benedict.

World leaders agreed to come up with $20 billion to fight hunger after a personal appeal from President Obama, who capped the European leg of his latest foreign trip with a visit to the Vatican this morning.

Despite Obama's pledge, G-8 makes little headway on global warming

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

The president promises at the Italy G-8 summit that the U.S. will lead on climate change, but familiar obstacles -- compounded by the global recession -- produce familiar results.

Addressing leaders of the world's most important economies early Thursday, President Obama wasted no time in proclaiming a new day for U.S. policy on climate change.

Global warming: The heat is on the U.S.

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

A climate-change bill in the Senate is a test of this country's commitment to deal with the problem.

This week's Group of 8 summit has pretty much lived down to the low expectations it generated from the outset, yet it did produce a long-overdue agreement to fight climate change.

Obama vows U.S. will lead the way on climate change

Thu, 9 Jul 2009 10:58:00 -0700

The president, speaking from a forum in Italy, commended efforts by assembled leaders to set guidelines, including an 80% reduction in emissions by industrialized nations by 2050.

President Obama praised efforts by industrialized and developing nations to set guidelines in the battle to control climate change and said today that the United States will increase its role in that fight.

Climate impasse at G-8 summit leaves nations mired

Thu, 9 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Developing countries refuse to back targets set by the Group of 8, which balk at any swift moves of their own.

Developing nations led by China and India refused Wednesday to back lofty but long-term targets proposed by the Group of 8 industrial nations to cut greenhouse gas emissions, balking at reluctance by leaders of the world's biggest economies to move more quickly on their own.

Chinese leader's withdrawal knocks G-8 meeting down a notch

Thu, 9 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Hu Jintao's absence is particularly conspicuous because the summit is to address issues in which China plays a big role in the problem and solution, including climate change and the economic meltdown.

The shutters clicked and the cameras whirred as the world's top leaders landed in the Italian countryside and lighted up the earthquake-ravaged town of L'Aquila with the highest-wattage star power the place has ever seen.

Leaders of developing nations shun plan to cut greenhouse gases in half

Wed, 8 Jul 2009 11:53:00 -0700

The Group of 8, meeting in Italy, backs a reduction in overall emissions by half by 2050 and 80% for industrialized nations. But leaders of developing nations balk at the plan.

The world's biggest polluters failed to reach an agreement today on a plan to cut greenhouse-gas emissions in half by 2050, after developing nations decided not to sign on to the idea during an international summit here.

For Jani Schofield, some progress -- and major setbacks

Wed, 8 Jul 2009 16:56:00 -0700

The 6-year-old, who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, doesn't fare well after a change in her environment, and the stress of caring for her takes a severe toll on her family.

On June 29, The Times profiled Jani Schofield, a 6-year-old diagnosed with schizophrenia, and her parents in “Jani’s at the mercy of her mind.” The article examined Jani's bouts of rage, her make-believe world, and Michael and Susan Schofield's efforts to keep their family together while also safely raising Jani and her toddler brother, Bodhi. Here is an update on the Schofield family.

Colorado town's wildfire law called intrusive

Tue, 7 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

A beetle infestation has made forests vulnerable to fire, prompting Breckenridge to require brush clearance around homes. The shift in tactics has angered many residents.

Until its trees started dying, the Colorado ski resort town of Breckenridge stayed out of the business of telling residents how to defend their homes against wildfire.

General Motors will face old and new challenges

Tue, 7 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

The leaner automaker will seek to gain its footing after its emergence from bankruptcy. It will confront an old problem: building cars people want and selling them at a profit.

The new General Motors hoping to emerge from bankruptcy this week will find itself mired in a weak car market, besieged by competitors vying to eat up its dwindling market share and pressed to change its corporate culture, all under the eyes of a strange new government ownership structure.