It's a sunny day in Beijing. Pedestrians bustle about on the crowded avenues, inhaling the sweet perfume of a passer-by, the pungent aroma of fried delicacies… and a hefty serving of toxic particulates that linger in the city's thick air.

To most ears, tropical rainforest preservation and economic development are diametrically opposed ideals; but to one team of natural and social scientists, the tensions between the two are fertile ground for innovation.