The projects described in this article were designed to provide a real world situation akin to the work of environmental professionals. The projects were conducted with Australian students working on environmental issues in Vietnam. The projects demonstrated that multi-disciplinary teamwork fits well into environmental projects, and importantly that the experiences are recognised by students as being valuable preparation for their environmental professions. The students demonstrated that they had learnt many skills that would be of direct importance to them in the professional conduct of a multi-disciplinary environmental project and also enhanced their cultural awareness and practice.