Grain quality, cooking quality, and nutritional quality traits are some of the major attributes that enhance the uptake and utilization of improved cowpea varieties. Therefore, there is a need for a better understanding of the genetic variation and inter-relationships among these quality traits in cowpeas to integrate them into cowpea breeding programs. This study was conducted to determine genetic variability among 306 cowpea genotypes for grain quality, cooking quality, and nutritional quality traits and to understand the interrelationships among these traits for exploitation in breeding programs. The results showed highly significant differences (p < 0.001) among genotypes for grain quality, cooking quality, and nutritional quality traits. The mean performance for these quality traits was also very variable. These results suggest that genetic variability exists in the cowpea genotypes studied, which can be exploited in breeding programs aimed at developing high-performing varieties for the said traits. Significant (p < 0.001) positive correlations were detected for protein content with iron and zinc. On the other hand, nutritional quality traits did not exhibit any association with grain quality or cooking quality traits. Cooking quality traits were also shown to be significantly and positively correlated with grain quality traits. This study has identified several genotypes with desirable quality-related traits that could be used in crossing programs to generate improved varieties with consumer-preferred traits to improve the food, income, and nutritional status of many smallholder farmers that largely depend on cowpeas.

Malawi faces increasing pressure on forest resources as rising urban demand for charcoal and firewood accelerates forest degradation in the Lilongwe River Upper Catchment, the primary water source for Lilongwe City. With over 90% of Malawians dependent on biomass energy and the country losing an estimated 33,000 hectares of forest annually, the consequences for water security, soil integrity, and rural livelihoods are severe. Existing research has largely examined woodfuel governance as a social and institutional issue, emphasising policy failures, corruption, and weak enforcement, with limited attention to the biophysical processes through which governance decisions shape landscapes. In this context, tracking changes in soils, water flows, and vegetation dynamics offers an important complementary perspective critical for integrated interventions. This paper proposes a conceptual framework, a Critical Zone Science and Social–Ecological Systems (CZS-SES) framework, which allows examination of how governance systems interact with biophysical processes across scales. The framework, informed by synthesis of policy documents and the empirical literature, highlights the need for more integrated, multidisciplinary approaches to understanding woodfuel governance and its implications for habitability in Malawi and across Africa.

Background: Climate change is intensifying droughts and floods in Sub-Saharan Africa, threatening livelihoods, food security, and habitability in vulnerable landscapes. This scoping review synthesizes evidence on Indigenous knowledge for drought and flood forecasting in Malawi, focusing on forecasting indicators, relationships with scientific forecasting, and implications for climate adaptation and habitability. Methods: Following the Arksey and O’Malley framework and PRISMA-ScR guidelines, peer-reviewed studies and published reports from 1990 to 2025 were identified through Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar. Of the 814 records identified, 692 remained after duplicate removal, 93 full-text records were assessed for eligibility, and 20 studies met the inclusion criteria. Evidence was synthesized descriptively and thematically. Results: Geographically, the evidence was concentrated in southern Malawi, particularly the Lower Shire Valley, with Chikwawa and Nsanje districts represented in 65 and 35% of the studies, respectively. The studies documented ecological, meteorological, riverine and celestial indicators used to anticipate drought and flood conditions and inform local decisions. Reported indicators varied across locations and hazards, with some showing correspondence with scientific understanding of environmental and climate variability, but evidence of predictive reliability was uneven and often based on qualitative or locally reported observations. Integration into formal climate services was constrained by limited validation and documentation, declining intergenerational transmission, environmental degradation, and institutional barriers. Evidence linking Indigenous knowledge-based forecasts to measurable adaptation outcomes was limited. Discussion: Indigenous knowledge-based forecasting is used at community level and provides locally relevant information for preparedness and decision-making, but the evidence remains heterogeneous and insufficient to establish its predictive effectiveness or direct adaptation impacts. Co-production among knowledge holders, scientists, and institutions could support systematic documentation, validation, and context-appropriate integration of Indigenous knowledge into climate services, contributing to the habitability of climate-vulnerable landscapes.

Critical Zone Science (CZS) provides an integrated understanding of interactions among soil, water, rock, atmosphere and biota, while Soil Security offers a complementary framework for evaluating soils through the dimensions of Capability, Condition, Capital, Connectivity and Codification. However, the relationship between Critical Zone (CZ) processes and these dimensions, and the extent to which Soil Security is represented within Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs), remain insufficiently articulated. This review examines relationships between major Critical Zone processes and the five Soil Security dimensions, assesses their documented representation across 62 CZOs and associated long-term monitoring-site entries, and identifies opportunities for strengthening their integration. The study combined a conceptual synthesis of the relevant literature with a structured desk-based assessment using an established historical inventory of 62 entries, supplemented by information from individual CZOs and institutional websites and associated publications. Each entry was evaluated against predefined evidence criteria for the five Soil Security dimensions using binary coding. Condition was documented most frequently (55/62; 88.7%), followed by Capital (42/62; 67.7%), Capability (33/62; 53.2%), Connectivity (32/62; 51.6%) and Codification (7/62; 11.3%). The findings show that CZOs activities provide substantial process-based evidence relevant to the biophysical dimensions of Soil Security, while societal and institutional dimensions, particularly Codification, are less consistently documented. Integrating Soil Security with CZOs research can therefore complement established strengths in long-term CZ observation by strengthening interpretation of soil functions and natural capital and by promoting greater attention to stakeholder engagement, knowledge exchange, stewardship and pathways for translating scientific evidence into institutional decision-making. This integration provides a basis for connecting understanding of how the CZ functions with how soil resources are valued, stewarded and governed.

Grain quality, cooking quality and nutritional quality traits are some of the major attributes that enhance uptake and utilisation of improved cowpea varieties. Therefore, there is need for a better understanding of the genetic variation and inter-relationships among these quality traits in cowpea to integrate them in cowpea breeding programs. The study was conducted to determine genetic variability among 306 cowpea genotypes for grain quality, cooking quality and nutritional quality traits and to understand the interrelationships among these traits for exploitation in breeding programs. The results showed highly significant differences (P