Five Generations of NGOs in Education: From Humanitarianism to Global Capitalism

This chapter details the emergence of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in education and the main debates around their involvement. The demarcations between generations are not firm; any one NGO can simultaneously exhibit elements of the various generations described. It highlights the contradiction within neoliberal capitalism that, on the one hand, people and institutions can reproduce a system unknowingly, while, on the other hand, fighting against global capitalism often means doing so from within the system. The chapter illustrates, in addition to grassroots initiatives some NGOs are now forming powerful transnational networks to directly engage in education policy and practice within and across different national contexts. Education NGOs have become, to various degrees, conduits through which neoliberalism spreads. It concludes by questioning the meaning of the public good of education vis-a-vis NGOs and whether it can exist, in new forms, not only within global capitalism but also within the contemporary moment of reactionary nationalism.