As I was preparing notes for my closing remarks today, I spent a lot of time looking for words to describe this conference and how I feel about what we've accomplished.

Words like dynamic, insightful and progressive came to mind.

I also thought I could describe this conference as ground breaking -- or as an important break from the past here in Alberta.

All these words and phrases fit -- all of them describe what's been going on here over the past few days.

But, when it comes right down to it, the word that keeps popping into my head was a little simpler. That word is "Wow."

I am truly amazed -- and incredibly satisfied -- with the discussions we've had. And like everyone else in this room, I am tremendously proud of what we've been able to accomplish.

From my point of view, this conference is a milestone for Alberta.

It's a milestone for two reasons.

First, it's a milestone because we've demonstrated clearly that not all Albertans argee with the current government's market-dominated approach to economic policy. We have shown that there are viable alternatives -- alternatives that put interests of people before the interests for profitable corporations.

This conference is also a milestone because it's the first time -- in my memory at least -- that the labour movement and a wide range or social and community groups have come together under the same roof to talk about mutual concerns and to co-operate on plans for the future.

This is a truly historic alliance.

It's the kind of alliance that -- if encouraged to grow and develop -- could result a significant re-orientation of politics and economics in this province.

The central lesson of the labour movement has always been that "together we are stronger." What we've learned this weekend is that when labour gets together with oter groups in society we are all strengthened.

Overall, the interest that has been demonstarted in this conference has been incredible -- almost overwhelming. We planned planned for about 150 delegates -- but by this morning our registration had climbed to slightly more than 250.

And -- as we have all seen -- it's not just union members who are here.

About half of our delegates are from the labour movement. But the rest are from a wide range of groups representing Albertans from almost every walk of life.

There are groups representing students and seniors. There are groups representing women and the poor. And there are groups devoted to protecting the environment and promiting the interests of injured workers.

As a result of this diversity, we have had a real and representative cross-section of Albertans here. It's clear to me that what we have here is a real Peoples' Summit.

So thank you to all of you. By coming out and participating in the workshops over the past two days and by attending last night's townhall, you have made this conference a success.

But this meeting was about more than just 250 people gathering in the same place -- it was also about ideas and vision.

And on that score, we have also been incredibly successful.

The discussions that I've heard in workshops over the past two days have truly been a breath of fresh air.

When you hear people from the government or the business community talking about economic development, they focus almost exclusively on the bottom line.

But here at our summit, we have been exploring the human dimensions of the economy. We have been talking about how the economy effects individuals, families and communities.

And we have been saying that an economy is only truly healthy when it actually improves conditions for ordinary working people. Booming sales figures and rising GDP mean nothing if ordinarly people have less money in their pockets and if people still feel insecure in their jobs.

This is the central problem with the Alberta economy today. We are the wealthiest province in Canada. We have the most productive work force. Our businesses are recording record profits. And our government is literally swimming in a pools of surplus cash.

Yet despite all these outward signs of economic strength, the Alberta economy still not really working for Albertans.

Wages have fallen below the national average. Full-time permanent jobs are becoming a thing of the past. Our rules and regulations to protect things like the environment, workplace safety and human rights have been gutted. And our public services have been dangerously weakened by the deepest budget cuts in Canadian history.

The message that has been repeated over and over again during this conference is that the Alberta Advantage is not an advantage at all. The rich in this province are getting richer and the rest of us are falling further and further behind -- as our wages are eroded and the public service that we rely on are gutted.

As one participant in the townhall put it last night: if this is a boom, I'd sure as hell hate to see a bust.

Well, the main thing that we've concluded this weekend is that things don't have to be this way. We don't have to have poverty in the midst of plenty. Workers don't have to suffer from insecrutiy and declining real wages when businesses are making huge profits. There are alternatives.

This afternoon we heard about those alternatives.

We're calling for an increased minimum wage -- so that working people don't have to live in poverty.

We're calling for massive re-investment in public services like education and health care -- so that our children are properly prepared for the future and so that our communities remain healthy.

We're calling for a strong role for the government in the economy. We need to make and enforce strict regulations that protect the environment and promote things like workplace safety and human rights.

And we're calling for stronger labour laws -- so that working people can have access to the kind of protection in the workplace they need.

Most importantly, we are calling on our leaders to make sure all their economic policies actually promote and protect the interests of ordinary working Albertans.

Growth for sake of growth is not enough. Growth that improves corporate profits but does not improve the lives of ordinary people is not acceptable. We are calling for an economic policy that puts people first.

I am incredibly pleased with the recommendations that have come forward today. We have shown what can be accomplished at a real people's summit.

But I don't think we should delude ourselves. The work we have done here today is important. And -- because of the solid representation we have here -- I don't think the government will be able to ignore us entirely. But the truth is that the Klein government is not likely to embrace or implement many of our proposals.

In a document that was leaked to the press just two days ago, the government made it clear that the real purpose of their growth summit is to win approval for even more market oriented reforms.

They're going to call for more privatization, more deregulation and even more tax cuts for businesses and the wealthy.

In the short-term, we probably won't be able to stop them from put these regressive ideas on the table. But by meeting together as we have done this weekend and outlining an alternative vision we will make it much more difficult for the Tories to sell their plans to the public.

Today we are planting seeds -- seeds of doubt in the governments market-dominated approach to economic issues -- and seeds of hope in a new kind of economics that puts people first.

Over the next few days, our staff will put together the ideas and conclusions from this forum in a conference proceeding booklet. We will deliver this booklet to the government growth summit. We will also mail it out to all the delegates who were here. And we will get it into the hands of as many Albertans as possible.

But this is just the first step in what we see as a much longer process. The ultimate goal to to change the way a majority of Albertans think about economic issues.

We must continue holding meetings like these. We must continuing talking about alternatives. We must continue educating each other and the public. We must do what we can here in Alberta, across Canada and internationally to challenge the almost unrestrained and ultimately destructive power of the laisez-faire market.

Eventually, I am convinced that the public will come to see the failure of the current market-dominated approach to economics. Eventually, the public will support the call that we have been making at the conference -- for a new kind of economics that puts people first.

Thank you once again for your participation in this conference. You HAVE made a difference!