Towards an Era of Development

A world of difference separates global politics in 1945 from 1965. In the twenty years after the second world war, a 'Third World' was added to the Cold War concepts of the 'First' and 'Second' worlds, and post-war decolonization had ushered in an 'era of development'. For the first time ever, theories and policies to eradicate underdevelopment became prominent on the global agenda and advanced to the top priority on the United Nations' agenda.

This international evolution inevitably had a dramatic impact on Socialism and Christian Democracy, two major ideologies which had their roots in Western Europe. Both became part of the global political dialogues taking place beyond Europe's borders. The result was a fascinating clash of Western and non-Western belief systems. But was it only that? Or were these political ideologies being used as vehicles for promoting national interests? Was the expansion of both ideologies beyond Europe driven, or even manipulated by realpolitical considerations or can ideologies truly wield autonomous international momentum capable of influencing global politics on their own? And how successful were these ideologies in expanding beyond their European home base? These are questions that seem more relevant to explore today than ever before.

"Towards an Era of Development" was written by Peter Van Kemseke.

Peter Van Kemseke studied history at the K.U.Leuven (Belgium) and the University of Hull (UK), and obtained a Master of Arts in International Relations' at CSU Los Angeles (US). In 2001, he obtained a PhD degree in history with a study on 'The Cold War and the Discovery of the Third World in international socialism and international Christian Democracy'. He currently works as a Belgian diplomat at the Permanent Representation of Belgium to the United Nations in New York.

Yes, "Towards an Era of Development" is part of the "KADOC-Studies on Religion, Culture and Society" series. It's book 5 in the series.

Elena Arigita Maza (Universidad de Granada)
Florian Bock (Ruhr Universität Bochum)
Timothy Brittain‐Catlin (University of Cambridge)
James Chappel (Duke University)
Kim Christiaens (KADOC-KU Leuven)
Kathleen James-Chakraborty (University College Dublin)
​​​​James Kennedy (Utrecht University)
​​​Franziska Metzger (PH Luzern)
Patrick Pasture (MoSa‐KU Leuven) - chairman
Isabelle Saint‐Martin (EPHE Paris)
Thijl Sunier (VU Amsterdam)
Árpád von Klimó (Catholic University of America)
Veerle De Laet (Leuven University Press)
Peter Heyrman (KADOC-KU Leuven) - secretary

Proposals

Proposals and enquiries can be sent to Peter Heyrman. The series welcomes monographs and edited volumes. Book proposals may relate to, for example, the political impact of religion, the dynamics between religion and welfare, and missionary history. All proposals and manuscripts are subject to double blind peer review involving at least one external reviewer (proposals) or at least two (manuscripts). The editors strive towards completing the review of proposals within two months and of complete manuscripts within five months after submission.

Please make use of the submission form to present your manuscript or proposal to our board.
Authors interested in Open Access can consult the available funding options.

Links & Resources

Introduction
From Cold War to Third World

Part I
Social Democracy and Christian Democracy on the eve of their global expansion, 1945-1950

1. Social Democratic and Christian Democratic Transnationalism: A True Reflection of National Politics
2. Social Democratic and Christian Democratic Transnationalism: A True Reflection of International Politics

Part II
The Socialist International and the Nouvelles Equipes Internationales in the period of their global expansion, 1950-1960

1. The Socialist International goes Global: British Interests, International Pressure and Missionary Zeal, 1950-1955
2. New Opportunities and Known Limits: Socialist Globalization between 1955 and 1960
3. The NEI's Reason for Existence: To Realize the European Ideal, 1950-1955
4. The NEI Testing the Waters beyond Europe, 1955-1960

Part III
The discovery of the Third World, 1960-1965

1. The Politicized 'Third World' of the 1950's
2. 1959-1960: The Third World in the Spotlight
3. Third World Vistas near and far in the Early 1960's

Conclusion

National and International Driving Forces of Globalization
The UN, a Catalyst of Transnational Globalization
The Three Pillars of Development Thinking

Abbreviations
Bibliography
Index on persons
Colophon

The Digital Object Identifier (DOI) for "Towards an Era of Development" is 10.11116/9789461661098.