All forms of popular protest include a specific category of 'popular intellectuals', who reflect on social reality, speak in the name of popular classes and who articulate ideas that inspire collective action. This volume focuses on these individuals from an original angle: it looks at the experiences of popular intellectuals in non-western societies, who operate within social-movement networks that link local, regional, and international arenas, and connect to a global flow of ideas. Eight case studies on different societies in twentieth-century Asia, Africa, and Latin America highlight specific activist intellectuals and their role in collective action. They cover a wide terrain, including framing contests among Muslim activists and cultural brokerage in an ecological movement. The collection provides fresh insights into the cultural dynamics of social contention and widens the geographic scope of current debates on this theme.