In light of the set of influences produced by changes arising, among others, from the scientific and technical revolution, globalization and the structural crisis of capitalism, this article reports some results of a study that analysed the development of international guidelines for environmental education (EE) in four historical periods between 1940 and 2012. Laurence Bardin's content analysis and Ludwik Fleck's epistemology guided this qualitative investigation. Based on articulations with the socioeconomic context of each period, the study identified elements that characterized knowledge, practices and traditions found in documents that recorded and influenced for more than half-a-century the production and dissemination of EE guidelines worldwide.