Kiers did research in Panama and Japan after her degree before being appointed professor at
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. She is also a Senior Research Associate at the
University of Oxford. Based on this hypothesis, Kiers is interested in developing fungi that behave "altruistically" in their environment to foster efficient plant growth and reduce the need for fertilizers. This interpretation of soil interactions as competition complicated the picture of a collaborative equilibrium that had begun to develop prior. It also allows Kiers to borrow mathematical models from economic theory to characterize nutrient exchanges. To track the flow of nutrients, Kiers has pioneered the use of quantum dots to tag molecules so that they fluoresce and can be more easily differentiated. Her work also concerns the evolution of plant-fungal interactions as the organisms evolve and enter into contact with new partners. Her research is supported by the European Research Council, the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) and the National Science Foundation. She has been a speaker at Brave New World events, at Ars Electronica Gardens and at
Cambridge University. Kiers has also worked in collaboration with artists. She helped to create an art installation with Isaac Monté and worked with designer Niels Hoebers to create an animated short film as a visual aid for her research presentations. Her research and comments on mycorrhizal networks were featured in the 2020 book
Entangled Life. Kiers has launched a non-profit organization called Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN) dedicated to informing the public about mycorrhizal networks, protecting biodiversity hotspots, and promoting further research. Kiers founded SPUN to map the biodiversity of the Earth's mycorrhizal communities... [and] is mapping what has been called the "dark matter" of life on the planet. == Awards and honours ==