No Room Left: When Tourism Growth Pushes Residents Out
Hosted by Sustainable Travel International in collaboration with the Caribbean Tourism Organization
About the Session
Across island destinations, tourism growth has delivered jobs and revenue — but it has also come with a growing sense of loss.
Residents feel crowded out of their own communities. Housing is harder to find. Everyday access to beaches, roads, and services is changing. Infrastructure designed for small populations is stretched to serve peak-season surges and cruise arrivals. What once felt manageable now feels overwhelming.
A single cruise ship can unload thousands of passengers into port towns at once. In popular destinations, visitation can exceed 100 tourists per resident, leaving locals feeling like minorities in their own communities.
When residents begin to ask, “Who is this destination really for?” support for tourism begins to erode.
This webinar explores how island destinations can recognize the early warning signs of overtourism and make informed decisions about how much tourism is enough, before frustration hardens into backlash. It also examines how much responsibility tourism businesses share in addressing this challenge. This conversation is not about stopping tourism. It’s about giving destinations the tools to manage growth before residents say “enough.”
What You'll Learn
- How destinations decide how much tourism is enough, and when growth starts to undermine livability.
- Practical tools destinations are using to protect local access to housing, beaches, and everyday services.
- Managing water, wastewater, and waste systems when tourism demand spikes far beyond resident capacity.
- Reducing pressure in hotspots, including hard choices around cruise arrivals, seasonality, and visitor caps.
- How tourism businesses can help prevent tourism pressure from escalating into community conflict.
This webinar was streamed live on March 26, 2026.
Meet the Experts
Speaker
Brian Buckley John Been
Tourism Policy, Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation Manager | Turks and Caicos Islands Government
Brian Buckley John Been is a distinguished senior tourism official from the Turks and Caicos Islands, renowned for his role in shaping the cruise tourism sector and advancing product development, with over two decades of experience in tourism. Currently serving as the Tourism Policy, Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation Manager for the Ministry of Tourism, Mr. Been supports implementation of strategic priorities against national goals.
Mr. Been’s foundational impact on the islands’ tourism landscape was cemented during his tenure as Tourism Disaster Risk & Strategic Manager (2018–2023) and, prior to that, as Senior Product Development Officer at the Turks and Caicos Tourist Board (2004–2018). He co-chaired the Cruise Steering Committee for Grand Turk and was instrumental in liaising between the Grand Turk Cruise Center, the Tourist Board and the government. Mr. Been played a central role in shaping national tourism strategy and contributed as a project lead for the National Tourism Strategy dubbed the 2005 O’Reilly Report and as a steering committee member for the 2015 KPMG Report. Additionally, he served as Project Manager for the Tourism Carrying Capacity Model Study, the most comprehensive analysis of the local tourism industry carried out by Target Euro. On the regional stage, he has served as Deputy Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation’s (CTO) Sustainable Tourism Technical Committee.
Mr. Been has served as a national focal point for CTO and Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) regional disaster risk management for tourism projects and played a key role in recovery efforts following Hurricane Ike, in particular. His dedication is further reflected in his extensive civic involvement. Mr. Been holds a Bachelor of Science in Tourism Management from the College of the Bahamas (now University of the Bahamas). His unique blend of strategic vision, crisis management and deep industry knowledge continues to make him an invaluable asset in guiding the sustainable growth of the Turks and Caicos Islands’ tourism sector.
Speaker
Narendra Ramgulam
Deputy Director Sustainable Tourism | Caribbean Tourism Organization
Narendra Ramgulam is the Deputy Director of Sustainable Tourism at the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), where he drives regional initiatives that strengthen sustainability practices, enhance climate and disaster resilience, and support innovation across the Caribbean tourism sector. He represents the organization at high-level forums, shapes regional policy, and works closely with governments, private-sector leaders, and development partners to advance a more competitive, future-ready Caribbean tourism industry.
A seasoned tourism and hospitality professional, Narendra previously managed his own consultancy and held academic roles including Postgraduate Coordinator and Lecturer at The University of the West Indies. He also served as Director of Tourism Product Development & Destination Management at the Tobago Tourism Agency Limited, where he secured international sustainability awards and strengthened Tobago’s safety reputation during the COVID-19 pandemic. An active researcher with 15 peer-reviewed and book chapter publications, his expertise spans sustainable and regenerative tourism, tourism anthropology, and destination development.
Speaker
Muryad De Bruin
Managing Director | Curaçao Tourist Board
As Managing Director and a member of the senior management team at the Curaçao Tourist Board,
Muryad de Bruin is devoted to the sustainable development of Curaçao’s tourism industry. His mission is to
foster local community involvement in tourism while providing a safe and sustainable destination for
all visitors.
Muryad de Bruin was born and raised in Curaçao. From a young age, he developed a fervent passion for hospitality and tourism, which motivated him to pursue a degree in hospitality management. Currently, he holds a master’s degree in strategic management.
He began his professional career in Curaçao in the airline industry and later transitioned to other marketing-related roles in the retail and banking sectors. He joined the tourist board 10 years ago and served as Regional Manager for South America, followed by Regional Manager for Europe. He remains deeply passionate about the continued growth and long-term sustainability of Curaçao’s tourism industry.
Speaker
Kelly Galaski
Senior Director of Operations & Head of Impact | Planeterra
Kelly Galaski is a sustainable tourism professional with 25 years of experience across the hospitality and tourism for-profit and non-profit sectors. She currently serves as Senior Director of Operations & Head of Global Impact at Planeterra. Earlier in her career, she spent more than a decade with Planeterra’s programs team (2009–2020), working with rural and Indigenous communities on community tourism experience development and serving as Director of Global Programs for four years. During that time, she also helped develop responsible travel policies and sustainability practices for one of the world’s largest adventure travel companies, G Adventures.
From 2022 to 2024, Kelly served as a Sustainable Tourism Specialist at the Travel Foundation, working with destinations globally toward achieving climate-positive and equitable tourism goals through destination stewardship strategies and capacity building programs. Kelly is passionate about the role tourism can play in community development, uplifting marginalized and underrepresented people and communities worldwide, as well as supporting conservation, nature restoration, and climate resilience.
Moderator
Paloma Zapata
CEO, Sustainable Travel International
Paloma Zapata leads Sustainable Travel International’s global efforts to maximize tourism’s contribution to environmental conservation and community well-being. With over 15 years of experience in sustainable tourism, Paloma has implemented impactful initiatives in 26 nations across the globe. Paloma works alongside destination leaders and communities to address the pressures of tourism growth, helping them plan for sustainable visitation, strengthen destination stewardship, and ensure tourism delivers benefits for residents, the environment, and local economies. Her work includes tourism management and carrying capacity initiatives in destinations worldwide, including island destinations such as Aruba, Curaçao, and the Seychelles. She also manages the organization’s efforts to engage the tourism industry in climate action through a suite of carbon measurement, action planning, offsetting, and educational solutions.
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