Branwen Spector

Dr. Branwen Spector serves as a Lecturer (Teaching) in Anthropology at University College London, specifically within the Department of Anthropology. Her appointments include roles in Social Anthropology and Material Culture and Social Anthropology, with a focus on contemporary ethnographic methodologies and digital research practices.

Her research centers on mobility and infrastructures in Palestine and among Israeli settlers, drawing from three years of ethnographic fieldwork in the Occupied Palestinian West Bank. She examines how road, internet, and human infrastructures shape mobilities for Palestinian refugees and Israeli settlers, while exploring social media's role in mediating navigation, mapping, and surveillance. Her work addresses occupation, colonialism, security, and methodological innovation in the Levant region, with particular emphasis on dating applications as research tools.

Dr. Spector co-founded The New Ethnographer project, producing resources on inclusive fieldwork ethics, and the Digital Ethnography Collective hosting workshops on digital research methods. Her 2024 book 'Inclusive Ethnography' establishes frameworks for safer, healthier fieldwork practices, reflecting her commitment to transforming anthropological research pedagogy at UCL.