Just because the people in my group were from different backgrounds, varied in age, and had different careers, did not mean that we could not work together. As long as we all respected everyone's right to learn and help, we were able to complete our project. This is something that my students need a little help with. They would like everyone to think and act the same. I plan on teaching them that that is not the only way to achieve harmony.
Diverse groups can produce great results just as well as homogenous groups.
I have participated in many other professional development opportunities, and none of them compares to what I did with Earthwatch. This expedition gave me the chance to be a scientist. I did what the entomologists did and therefore learned quite a bit of information first hand. It's much easier to teach information that you gain yourself. When someone else gives you the information and you regurgitate it to your students, it has less impact.