The group includes a political scientist, the head of an African-American studies department, an English professor and a former city attorney.

WSJ: Can We Please Stop Talking About TV?

"It's almost unimaginable, the boom that has occurred in these Eastern cities, " says Emil Pocock, a professor at Eastern Connecticut State University, whose American Studies department has documented the sizes and amenities of the world's largest malls.

FORBES: They're springing up in Asia, but will they all last?

An assistant professor of Asian-American studies at California State University at Fullerton, Noh has read the sobering statistics from the Department of Health and Human Services: Asian-American women ages 15-24 have the highest suicide rate of women in any race or ethnic group in that age group.

CNN: Push to achieve tied to suicide in Asian-American women