Officials in Barbados and other Caribbean islands are being encouraged to take a more collaborative approach to managing the menacing sargassum seaweed, which hoteliers say continues to impact beachgoers and vacation seekers.At the same time, some regional tourism industry operators are reporting a ramping up of effort to deal with the ongoing issue, as they outlined some best practices from which other destinations can learn.Chief Tourism Officer with the Ministry of Tourism in Belize Raymond Mossiah said given the magnitude of the problem, the government in his country in 2015 established a “multi-sectoral task force” to get a handle on the situation.“This task force was a public-private sector partnership. Collaboration is important,” he said, noting that the hotel association and academia are involved.Mossiah said the challenge with sargassum should not only be seen as a tourism problem given the far-reaching impact it could have on economic activity.