Navigating nationalism, universalism and cosmopolitanism: a historical inquiry into international education organisations and the crisis of the liberal international order

This article addresses the underexplored role of education intergovernmental organisations in navigating crises of the liberal international order, focusing on how cosmopolitanism, nationalism and universalism shape OECD and UNESCO policies and strategies. Our critical analysis of these ideological influences traces continuities and transformations within evolving liberal international order in these organisations’ activities. While the global education agenda of Sustainable Development Goal 4 aligns the OECD and UNESCO, their differing priorities and approaches offer a valuable opportunity for comparative analysis. Drawing on archival research and historical publications, the article identifies two key dimensions of the liberal international order crisis: legitimacy and ideology. The legitimacy crisis is seen in shifting educational reforms promoted by intergovernmental organisations, which now emphasise soft skills and metrics to assess educational outcomes within the Sustainable Development Goal 4 framework. Tensions among globalisation, nationalism and cosmopolitanism mark the ideological crisis. An exemplary response is global citizenship education, which emerged as a key intergovernmental organisation strategy, legitimising more flexible national interpretations while maintaining globalist ideals traditionally upheld by intergovernmental organisations. The article deepens understanding of how education intergovernmental organisations have historically functioned and continue to operate within the context of liberal international order crises, elucidating the complexities of global education governance amid shifting ideological and legitimacy challenges.