By providing a history of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from the late eighteenth century through to the twenty-first century, this book sheds critical new light on globalization. The book’s unprecedented coverage spans business, development, educational, environmentalist, health, human rights, humanitarian, labour, peace, professional, religious, women’s and youth associations, amongst many others. In contrast to conventional wisdom, a cyclical account of the evolution of transnational civil society is delineated, and the book puts forward a comprehensive analytical frame ... More

By providing a history of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from the late eighteenth century through to the twenty-first century, this book sheds critical new light on globalization. The book’s unprecedented coverage spans business, development, educational, environmentalist, health, human rights, humanitarian, labour, peace, professional, religious, women’s and youth associations, amongst many others. In contrast to conventional wisdom, a cyclical account of the evolution of transnational civil society is delineated, and the book puts forward a comprehensive analytical framework for understanding this pattern, incorporating economic, environmental, political, social and technological factors. The book draws insights from and contributes to the study of international relations, global governance, transnational history and world sociology, and is notable for its consideration of developments in both Eastern and Western hemispheres. Having identified a period of transition between ancient and modern international NGOs in the late eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries, the book proceeds to delineate three waves in the evolution of transnational civil society: the late nineteenth to early twentieth centuries, the period between the two World Wars, and the post-war era. The book concludes by drawing from historical experience to shed light on the potential for transnational civil society in the twenty-first century, emphasising the significance of learning from the failures as well as the apparent successes of the past.