Cities Summit of the Americas wraps up with visit from Secretary of State Blinken
Cities Summit of the Americas wrapped up in Denver on Friday with a visit from the U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. Blinken met with female mayors to discuss a few of the themes highlighted at the Cities Summit including climate change and equality.
Blinken also spoke about how Denver is addressing the opioid crisis.
"What Denver is doing so remarkably well both on dealing with prevention, with treatment, with recovery, with detection, with law enforcement. All of that is a powerful example for other communities that may be affected down the road if they're not already affected by synthetic opioids like fentanyl," said Blinken.
The secretary of state went on to say the number one killer of Americans aged 18 to 39 is synthetic opioids, notably fentanyl and this is a problem that requires work at local, national and international levels.
Denver Mayor Michael Hancock teamed up with Blinken and leaders from cities and communities across the Americas to sign the Denver Declaration, a commitment to act on the priorities discussed at the summit and to reconvene for a second summit in 2025.
The document reinforces the mission of the Cities Summit to expand international engagement and cooperation among one another and with national governments and international organizations.
"It has been an honor to host this inaugural gathering and welcome delegates from across the Americas to the Mile High City for these critical conversations," Hancock said in a statement. "The Denver Declaration is the perfect way to cap a week of dialogue and new partnerships. It highlights the transformational work that began this week and will continue to benefit local communities throughout the hemisphere."
Nearly 4,000 people attended the summit in downtown Denver this week, including 250 mayors representing 35 countries.
