I was born in 1954 and have lived in the USA, England, Poland, Italy, France and Malaysia. Currently, I live in Hull in the north of England. I am married to Kaz Janowski. He and I have one daughter and three grandchildren.

I am a social anthropologist with a fascination with the spiritual and cosmological relationship between humans and their natural environment. My main field site has been with the Kelabit, who live in the highlands in Borneo. Have a look at the section of the website entitled Heart of Borneo.

Having spent a good deal of time in the forest in Borneo, I came to realize that spending time with other species in natural environments is deeply nourishing on a spiritual level. Have a look at the section of the website entitled Forest Bathing. Keep an eye on my blog or subscribe to my Whatsapp channel ‘Wild Calm – Forest Bathing with Monica’ to find out about forest bathing events I am leading.

Since 2017, I’ve been researching beliefs in ‘dragon’ water beings among different ethnic groups in Sarawak. Have a look at the section of the website entitled Dragons and Cosmology. Keep an eye on my blog or subscribe to my Whatsapp channel, ‘Dragons in Borneo’ to find out about my upcoming talks and publications on this topic.

I love communicating the results of my research to a wider audience than the academic world. One way I do this is through museums. Have a look at the section of my website entitled Museums and Exhibitions and keep an eye on my blog for updates on exhibitions.

With my husband Kaz, I’ve also made a number of radio programmes using human stories to communicate the results of research projects on which I and other researchers have worked. Have a look on the section of my website entitled Radio Series.

My husband Kaz is of Polish origin and his mother was deported to Kazakhstan by the Russian government in 1940, and I have done some research on this topic, especially in relation to food customs. Have a look at the section of my website entitled Deportation of Poles.