Small farmers priced out of California’s cannabis market

Once a star of Silicon Valley, biotech company founder Elizabeth Holmes is facing several counts of fraud. Prosecutors have accused her of "lying and cheating" in opening arguments.

California's Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has successfully fended off an attempt to topple him in a recall election. Republicans had tried to unseat him over his policies on immigration, COVID-19 and crime.

This week, the governor of California decisively defeated a Republican campaign to remove him from office. Gavin Newsom easily survived the recall election, leaving dozens of challengers far behind. The victory sends a strong message that California voters are still behind Newsom and the traditional polices of the deeply Democratic state. We take a closer look at the recall mechanism.

Hundreds of firefighters are battling the Windy Fire to protect several groves of giant sequoias in the United States. The fire has already charred 25,000 acres (10,000 hectares), and a number of separate fires are converging on the California woodland that is home to the huge trees.

The town of Greenville, California was completely burned to the ground almost two months ago when the Dixie Fire tore through the area. Buildings lay in ruins, cars sit scorched and trees stand charred after what the governer called a "climate-induced" wildfire. Climate change amplifies droughts, creating ideal conditions for wildfires to spread out of control and inflict unprecedented material and environmental damage.

Surrounded by barbed wire and an electric fence, marijuana plants flourish under the bright sun on a farm in a mountainous area outside Rio de Janeiro. The farm belongs to a pioneering Brazilian NGO engaged in the production of medical cannabis to help patients with seizures.

An oil spill in Southern California closed beaches and led authorities to cancel the last day of the Pacific Air Show. At least 126,000 gallons (98,420 liters) of oil spilled off the coast of Orange County.

The massive oil spill from 480,000 liters leaking off the Orange County coast is slowly moving south, threatening marine-protected areas as well as popular beaches. On the coastline of South California, most beaches are closed, with efforts to clean areas impacted by the oil ongoing.

Luxembourg joins only two other countries and a handful of US states in decriminalizing the cultivation of cannabis for recreational use. However, Germany may not be far behind.

Handing the win to pharmaceutical companies, the judge said the plaintiffs hadn't proven that deceptive marketing by the firms led to a rise in unnecessary opioid prescriptions.

Though discussions at COP26 are usually among national governments, the US state of California sent its own delegation to the UN climate conference in Glasgow. California is already feeling the effects of climate change and in recent years it has taken aggressive action to reduce greenhouse gases, with a target of 100 percent clean electricity by 2045. Our correspondents Valérie Defert, Pierrick Leurent and Ryan Thompson report from the Golden State.

This week has seen a new chancellor take the helm in Germany: Olaf Scholz is leading a never-tried-before coalition of his own Social Democrats, as well as the Greens and pro-business Liberals. They come to office promising to get a hold on Covid-19, keep the economy stable – and bring some liberal changes to the EU's biggest economy, including the legalisation of recreational cannabis.