I know some will roll their eyes when I say this, but the federal Liberals – and all political parties for that matter – could learn a lot from the Alberta Liberal Party. After all, everyone talks about “renewing” and “rebuilding” but all too often those are just meaningless buzzwords.

The ALP, however, is actually doing politics differently, or at least trying to, at their annual convention in Calgary, which I’ve had the pleasure of attending and presenting at.

The party president, executive director, and convention co-chair are all under 30. More importantly, ALP members are currently voting on a series of groundbreaking constitutional changes. They may not all pass – after all, unlike trivial matters such as the future of the country, 75% is required for these resolutions to pass. But either way, these are the kinds of reforms the federal grits should be talking about.

I’ll be live blogging the resolutions as they’re voted on below:

PARTY POLICY (PASSED): As I’ve said before, the policy process of most parties is usually conducted in the following stages:

1. Policies are proposed by party members and debated at the riding level
2. After a series of conventions and votes, party members prioritize which policies they feel most strongly about
3. Passed policies sit in a binder in the Leader’s Office

This amendment requires the party platform to include at least 2 of the 3 top resolutions passed at convention. This is a great idea in my opinion, since it adds meaning to an otherwise meaningless policy process. A lot of people join political parties because they want to have an impact on policy decisions – if their voice are ignored, they just become disillusioned.

OPEN NOMINATIONS (PASSED): The motion would open up nomination meetings to any Albertan living in the riding who registers their support for the Alberta Liberal Party.

In my opinion, this is a great way to get people who might be a bit squeamish about party politics involved in party politics. It opens up nomination meetings, creating interest in the party.

OPEN LEADERSHIP (PASSED): Basically the same intent as above – leadership races would be opened up to all Albertans.

WOMOV (PASSED): Party members narrowly passed (77%) a proposal to weight all ridings equally in leadership races. This is an important move for a party struggling to find relevance outside of downtown Calgary and Edmonton – if anyone should recognize the importance of growing the Liberal Party outside of its traditional base, it’s Alberta Liberals.