Cecilia Maliwichi-Nyirenda is the first Malawian to formally study ethnobotany—the relationship between people and plants. She has spent most of her time documenting medicinal plants and other economically important plants. With respect to medicinal plants, Cecilia has been doing research on medicinal plants used by pregnant women and children under five years of age. Her particular interest in indigenous knowledge prompted her to establish a non-governmental organization known as the Indigenous Knowledge Centre in September 2009. Maliwichi-Nyirenda lived most of her life in a village, where she relied on wild plant resources. Her grandparents collected medicinal plants for household primary health care. This influenced her decision to specialize in ethnobotany up to the PhD level.