For 200 years, the grand project of liberal internationalism has been to build a world order that is oriented toward progressive ideas. Today, this project is in crisis, threatened by illiberal challengers and nationalist-populist movements.

A new book by G. John Ikenberry offers the first full account of liberal internationalism’s long journey from its 19th-century roots to today’s fractured political moment. He discusses "A World Safe for Democracy: Liberal Internationalism and the Crises of Global Order" in this episode.

Ikenberry, a theorist of international relations, is the Albert G. Milbank Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University and co-director of Princeton’s Center for International Security Studies. He’s the author of eight books.

"A World Safe for Democracy" has been reviewed in the Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, and others. 

Endnotes is a podcast series taking listeners behind the cover and through the pages of books and publications on politics, policy, and more — all written by faculty at Princeton’s School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA). The show is hosted, produced, and edited by B. Rose Huber, communications manager and senior writer at SPIA. Check out the show archives.