Anna Jackman

Anna is an Associate Professor in Human Geography at the University of Reading. A feminist political geographer by background, Anna’s research explores the impacts of digital and robotic technologies in everyday, urban, and military spaces and life.

Engaging with feminist, political, digital and robotic geographies, Anna’s recent work has explored the use and impacts of drones in changing airspace, engaging with diverse stakeholders and actors to understand different uses, experiences and perspectives on drones as they may be (re)shaping airspace, everyday life and (in)securities. 

Anna is also part of the Royal Geographical Society and Antipode-funded project 'States of Precarity', which brings together researchers across several UK universities to explore the short and long term effects of precarity in UK Higher Education Geography. The project report and actions plans are available here.

Anna is presently leading a British Academy Small Research Grant, ‘Future drone skies: Planning in volume’ (Co-I, Paul Cureton) (SRG25\250332) which engages with planners to explore the implications of drones in three-dimensional (volumetric) airspace for UK built environments and residents living in their midst. 

Anna previously led an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) New Investigator Award, ‘Diversifying drone stories’ (December 2021 – July 2023, ES/W001977/1) which explored the ways in which drones are (re)shaping UK airspace, with a focus on aerial (in)securities and harms. In terms of publications, Anna’s work has explored themes and topics including: drone misuse, drone harms, drone sensing, ‘everyday droning’, drone futures, and military drones. Conceptually, Anna’s work has mobilised feminist thinking in reflecting on territory and volumetric thinking, and has sought to extend existing understandings of volume by bringing the analytic and sensibility of gentleness to bear.

Examples of Anna’s public-facing writing include work on local government drone use, police drone use, commercial drone use, drone misuse,  public perception of drones, and conservation drones. 

You can find out more about Anna’s research projects on the Drone Geographies webpage, and about Anna's publications here.

Anna is interested in the policy dimensions of growing drone use and acted as the Specialist Adviser to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee 2019 Inquiry into 'Commercial and recreational drone use in the UK' and as an expert witness for the Defence Committee's 2019 Inquiry into the 'Domestic threat of drones'. Anna has shared her research in presentations in Westminster (on rogue drones) and to the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (on drones and counter-drone technology).

You can connect with Anna on a.h.jackman@reading.ac.uk , Bluesky, X @ahjackman and LinkedIn.