On Wednesday, August 17, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock, and U.S. National Summit Coordinator Kevin O'Reilly announced that the first Cities Summit of the Americas will take place April 26-28, 2023, in Denver. The announcement came at a breakfast meeting of the Colorado Latin American and Caribbean Consuls hosted by Governor Polis.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the Biden-Harris Administration's commitment to host the Cities Summit on June 7, on the eve of the Ninth Summit of the Americas, which took place June 8-10, in Los Angeles.
The Cities Summit will promote regional cooperation, convening sub-national leaders from across the entire Western Hemisphere with diverse and inclusive representatives of government, civil society, business, academia, youth, culture and the arts, and indigenous and under-represented groups.
Together they will engage with the agenda national leaders embraced at the Ninth Summit in Los Angeles and consider how best to ensure its relevance to citizens at a regional and local level. This includes strengthening democracy and public health, fostering clean energy transitions, meeting environmental challenges, increasing access to critical digital technologies, ensuring the safety and dignity of all migrants, and combatting the spread and influence of disinformation.
City and community leaders will meet throughout the week of April 24, with official events starting April 26. Events will include plenary sessions, stakeholder roundtables, expert panels, networking sessions, commercial engagements, and public outreach activities, all to address a range of priorities local communities across the Americas share.
With their robust connections across the hemisphere, thriving and resilient business and cultural communities, and commitment to sustainability, Denver and Colorado exemplify the best in city- and state-level innovation.
