The social-democratic roots of global governance: Welfare internationalism from the 19th century to the United Nations

Abstract

Welfare internationalism was and still is one of the most powerful justifications for establishing international organizations. It suggests that public international organizations should cater to the material needs of individuals, rather than solve conflicts among states. In this article, we trace the origins of welfare internationalism, challenging the dominant narrative that depicts it as a projection of the British welfare state or the American New Deal to the globe. We show that welfare internationalism emerged earlier and combined ideational elements of very different origins. Notions of professional colonial administration migrated to the international context and dovetailed with a cosmopolitan interpretation of 19th-century public unions as caretakers of citizen interests. Reform socialist approaches to the social question inspired domestic and international developments simultaneously, leading to the foundation of the International Labour Organization, which became a crucial venue for the promulgation of welfare internationalism. We thus document how international theorists and practitioners of the early 20th century established a new perspective on international affairs, emanating from individuals and their needs. That perspective came to rival the traditional conception of international politics as intergovernmentalism and delivered important building blocks for the (self-)legitimation of the League of Nations and the United Nations.

International Organizations in Education: New Takes on Old Paradigms

“…The ILO's humanistic, social take on the purpose of education is also reflected in the IO's history and its view on education over time. Since its inception in 1919, the ILO was concerned with broader social welfare policies (Strang and Chang 1993) and highlighted the social significance of education for the improvement of quality of life (Steffek and Holthaus 2018). In its Declaration of Philadelphia from 1944, the ILO defined one of its tasks as being to support "the assurance of equality of educational and vocational opportunity" (ILO 1944).…”

The United Nations Secretary-General as an International Civil Servant

“…His rhetoric partly reflects this social democratic mindset as it focuses on development, solidarity, or the ones left behind. 113 In his inaugural address, Guterres displays a balance among the categories of serving the organization and its goals as well as seeking a more political role in the sense of leadership for peace. While it is too early for an assessment of Guterres' achievements, 114 his intentions are in line with the trajectory of his predecessors.…”

The IPE of global social policy governance

“…More recently, in a provocative article, Steffek and Holthaus (2017) argued that the sources for what they refer to as 'welfare internationalism' are not 'domestic analogies', or the transposal of welfare ideas and institutions from national to the global level after the Second World War, but rather they stem from four different origins: 'One was a transfer of notions of professional colonial administration to the international sphere: expert-driven, rationalist in a utilitarian way and openly paternalistic. The second was a cosmopolitan interpretation of 19th century public unions as caretakers of global public interests, understood as the interest of individuals rather than states.…”