Personal profile
Overview
Kirsty Watkinson is an Environmental Decision Support Modelling Research Associate in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at The University of Manchester as part of the UKRI-funded AQUAROAD project (https://www.aquaroad.org/) led by Professor Laura Richards. Kirsty’s expertise includes JavaScript, Python, SQL and PHP programming languages, parallelisation of spatial analysis, agent-based modelling, the use of Open Source geospatial software and manipulation of PostgreSQL/PostGIS databases.
Kirsty completed a PhD in Geography in the School of Environment, Education and Development at The University of Manchester in 2023. Kirsty's research focused upon the improvement of volunteer value in volunteered geographic information projects using emergent and existing technologies. Prior to her current role, Kirsty worked as a Research Associate on the NERC-funded MEaSURE project.
Research Beacons, Institutes and Platforms
- Sustainable Futures
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being -
SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities -
SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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From Archives to AI: Using Old Maps and Gazetteers to Improve the Geoparsing Capabilities of Large Language Models
Watkinson, K., Huck, J., Ndawula, A. & Ackers, L., 15 Apr 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) 33rd Annual GIS Research UK Conference (GISRUK). ZenodoResearch output: Chapter in Book/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review
Open Access -
Interactive effects of urbanness and land cover types on soil carbon and nitrogen pools in green spaces
Huang, P., Sun, Y., Coole, A., Watkinson, K., Bardgett, R. & Johnson, D., 8 Oct 2025, In: Journal of Environmental Management. 394, 127619, p. 1-11 11 p., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2025.127619.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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The dependence of urban tick and Lyme disease hazards on the hinterlands
Gandy, S., Hall, J., Plahe, G., Watkinson, K., Johnson, D., Birtles, R. & Gilbert, L., 23 Sept 2025, In: Nature Cities.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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After the Twitter X-pocalypse: Approaches to Characterising Human Behaviour in Agent-based Models and Beyond
Watkinson, K. & Huck, J., 10 Apr 2024, 32nd Annual Geographical Information Science Research UK Conference (GISRUK) .Research output: Chapter in Book/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review
Open AccessFile99 Downloads (Pure) -
Maximising the Value of a Volunteer: A Novel Method for Prioritising Humanitarian VGI Activities
Watkinson, K., Huck, J. J. & Harris, A., 21 Dec 2023, In: Journal of Spatial Information Science.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access4 Downloads (Pure)
Activities
- 4 Oral presentation
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An open source exploration into the impact of map data coverage on estimations of access to healthcare
Watkinson, K. (Speaker)
17 Nov 2022Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation › Research
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How much is ‘enough’? Exploring the impact of volunteered dataset completeness upon healthcare accessibility modelling
Watkinson, K. (Speaker)
6 Apr 2022Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation › Research
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Centaur VGI: Evaluating a human-machine workflow for increased productivity during humanitarian mapping campaigns
Watkinson, K. (Speaker)
15 Apr 2021Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation › Research
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Centaur VGI: Evaluating a human-AI workflow to increase the quality and productivity of humanitarian activities
Watkinson, K. (Speaker)
9 Apr 2021Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation › Research
Thesis
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Improving the Efficiency, Enjoyment, and Efficacy of Humanitarian Map Data Collection
Watkinson, K. (Author), Harris, A. (Co Supervisor) & Huck, J. (Main Supervisor), 14 Sept 2023Student thesis: Phd
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