Andre Siegfried, a French political scientist who studied Canada, had a rather dour view of Canadian political leaders. A century ago, he wrote that Canadian leaders, “seem to stand in fear of great movements of public opinion and seek to lull them rather than encourage them and bring them to fruition.” On the surface, Alberta’s long periods of one-party government coupled with recent low levels of democratic engagement seem to confirm Siegfried’s view.

An outside observer might think that Albertans are almost indifferent to what goes on in the legislature. He might say that active democracy scarcely exists in Alberta. But he would be mistaken, just as someone who looks upon an empty field in springtime would be mistaken if he were to say there is no life in the field, unaware of the seeds planted beneath the surface.

Sprouts have again emerged, and Albertans have been asking some big questions.

I caught a glimpse of these sprouting seeds on a recent visit to Fort McMurray. Preston Manning was in town to deliver a speech at Keyano College, and I had the opportunity to tag along. When time came for questions and comments from the audience, it wasn’t the economy, energy or the environment that came up. Most wanted to talk about how to improve our political discourse and democratic participation. I heard the argument that without intelligent debate and thoughtful participation, Alberta would be ill-equipped to face the big questions of our time.

Increasing numbers of Albertans are asking questions:

Are we living up to our full potential as a province? What is our vision for the next chapter of Alberta’s story?

Now that we seem to emerging from this economic downturn, what is the state of our public finances, services, and infrastructure? How well have we saved and invested our resource revenues?

How well prepared is Alberta for the economy of the future? How do we properly harness science, technology and innovation?

What reforms are necessary to guarantee high-quality, accessible, and cost-effective health care for Albertans? How do we improve our education system to prepare young people with the knowledge and skills they need to reach their full potential?

Alberta is no longer the poor underdog of Confederation. What positive role do we envision for ourselves on the national stage, a role worthy of our growing economic, demographic and political strength?

How do we encourage our fellow Albertans to be fully engaged in public life and the policy decisions affecting our future? How do we encourage fellow Albertans to be civically engaged citizens who volunteer, donate to charity, vote and are otherwise active participants in our communities?

On each of these questions, Albertans are looking for vigorous discussion and meaningful decisions. This then will be the topic of a Conference on Alberta’s Future planned for February 5-6 in Edmonton. Organized in part by the Manning Centre for Building Democracy, the purpose of the conference will be to generate ideas, proposals, and plans for shaping a more positive and inspirational future for Alberta. I encourage you to visit the website (www.albertasfuture.ca) and offer your ideas for the future of Alberta.

This conference is about ideas, not politics. But this conference is only the beginning. When Albertans aren’t getting the answers or information they need and want, they need to demand better.

This will be the challenge for Alberta’s political leaders; how to respond to the questions and aspirations of Albertans and demonstrate that they have the will and capability to carry the province forward.

The way to defeat an insurgency is to win over the people and make the enemy irrelevant. The challenge for the Progressive Conservative government and for Premier Ed Stelmach is to do just that by responding to Albertans and reinvigorating the party and government. On the other hand, the challenge facing Danielle Smith and the Wildrose Alliance Party will be to mature from protest movement to a prepared government in waiting.

And ultimately the question for all our current and aspiring political leaders is: will you stand in fear of great movements of public opinion or will you encourage them and bring them to fruition? Whoever can encourage the current movement of public opinion and bring it to fruition is likely to carry the judgment of those sprouting seeds in Fort Mc-Murray and across Alberta.

Nicholas Gafuik is managing director of the Mann ing Centre for Building Democracy (www.manningcentre.ca). To learn more about the Feb. 5 and 6 Conference on Alberta’s Future taking place in Edmonton, visit www.albertasfuture.ca