The Yale M. Braunstein Student Award for the best student paper, submitted for the PTC Annual Conference, is named in honor of Yale M. Braunstein, a longtime PTC Member and contributor to PTC’s Research Committee. Mr. Braunstein’s contribution to students in the field of telecommunications and information, along with his advocacy to become involved with PTC, is immeasurable.

The award for 2020 goes to Hoan Nguyen, a doctoral student from the University of Southern California, USA. Her paper titled “Splintering Communications: The Reality of Digital Practices Among People Experiencing Homelessness in an Urban Ghetto”examines digital practices among people experiencing homelessness in Skid Row – an urban ghetto located in downtown Los Angeles – using a grounded field research approach. Introducing the notion of “splintering communications,” the paper discusses the precarious access and use of information communication technologies, their socio-technical context, and their consequences on the lives of the urban poor.

Hoan will present her paper at PTC’20 on Sunday, 19 January 2020 in Strategies to Empower Development, which will be held from 15:30-16:45 in MPCC, South Pacific 2.