Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas is to take part in the first-ever Cities Summit of the Americas in Denver to share her digital and automation expertise with city leaders from North and South America.

The Cities Summit of the Americas is a U.S. government-led effort to convene city, state and municipal leaders from throughout the Western Hemisphere to focus on shared challenges and solutions. Speakers include U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Kyiv, Ukraine, Mayor Vitali Klitschko who will appear on a panel about global leadership.

Pappas is to participate in a panel discussion with five mayors from North and South American cities on Thursday, April 27, titled: “Digital tools for improving cities’ revenue and public service delivery.”

Pappas, whose office collects and distributes $16 billion in property taxes yearly, is to explain how she used technological innovation to increase efficiency and reduce the number of government workers in her office by more than 75% since being elected in 1998.

“Digital transformation was the magic that allowed me to make my office efficient and transparent,” Pappas said. “I’ve hosted officials from more than 100 countries in my office and they need magic, too. They want to see how we do things in Cook County.”

The Cities Summit, a localized version of the Summit of the Americas, runs from April 26 – 28. Approximately 250 U.S. and international mayors and more than 3,500 delegates will attend.

Pappas has traveled the globe touting the digital advancements in her office. In 2021 she spoke to forums in Spain and in the Dominican Republic. In 2022 she hosted a property tax summit for representatives from more than a dozen countries from the Organization of American States. The immersive two-day event dove into the mechanics of running the second-largest property tax system in the U.S.

She is to speak before the Greek Parliament this summer.