Author Biographies :: John McKnight and Peter Block

John McKnight and Peter Block

John L. McKnight was raised a traveling Ohioan, having lived in seven neighborhoods and small towns in the eighteen years before he left to attend Northwestern University, in Evanston, Illinois. There, he had the good fortune to be educated by a faculty dedicated to preparing students for effective citizenship. He graduated into the U.S. Navy, where he had three years of “postgraduate” education in Asia during the Korean War. More...

Peter Block was born in Chicago and spent most of his early years in the Midwest. After college, he went to New Jersey and was involved in the early days of creating the field of organization development. This entailed some years at Exxon Research and Engineering Company and then the formation of a consulting firm with Tony Petrella. Marvin Weisbord joined in 1971, and the firm did pretty well until, Block says, “we all got into our sixties and either retired or moved in other directions.” More...

Articles by this Author…

Building a Healthy and Just Community

Posted on July 26, 2012 in Stories

When the Chief of Police brings restorative practice into the heart of the community, you know something is happening there. Transcribed highlights from John and Peter's conversation with Mike Butler show what's possible.… read more »

Occupying a Different Community Space

Posted on February 7, 2012 in Posts

UCLA professor and environmental health sciences department chair Richard J. Jackson's concern for the physical attributes of neighborhood and city spaces matches our thoughts on building the relationships that lead to community abundance.… read more »