History of John M. Knox & Associates, Inc.

As a young newspaper reporter in Honolulu, John M. Knox covered planning issues in the early days of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) system. He noticed that many of the most critical issues really had as much to do with the economic, social, and political aspects as they did with the physical aspects of the environment.

He decided to return to graduate school to prepare for a career as a socio-economic research consultant. In 1979, he wrote his first social impact assessment, as an appendix to the EIS for expansion of the Princeville Resort on Kaua`i. At that time, he did business as "Community Resources," and later incorporated under that name in 1984.

“Community Resources, Inc.” became Hawai'i's first full-service socio-economic research consultancy, employing up to 10 people at the peak of resort development and planning activities in Hawai'i during the early 1990s. Community Resources was known for excellence in both quantitative and qualitative aspects of its research activities and for its working partnerships with community groups facing major change and development. The company produced dozens of socio-economic assessments, with particular emphasis on tourism, residential, and military projects.

When the economy stagnated in the 1990s, Dr. Knox and his company diversified activities – including substantially more policy research and program evaluations for public- and nonprofit-sector clients.

In early 1995, he sold the name and assets of that company; spent a year or two focusing mostly on his family; then began to function as a sole practitioner (with the help of a network of associates) under the re-named corporate identity “John M. Knox & Associates, Inc.”

In the 2000s, JMK Associates re-opened downtown Honolulu offices and has again acquired a working staff to support Dr. Knox as engagements began to proliferate once more. The company today has a diversified practice. It still does socio-economic studies for land use entitlements, but also generates surveys, policy research, and performance measures for public-sector and nonprofit clients.