Southern Africa is one of the world’s most vulnerable regions due to climate variability, and is already experiencing significant warming, increasingly erratic rainfall, and more frequent extreme events such as droughts and floods. These changes are intensifying ecological degradation, threatening biodiversity and undermining the livelihoods of millions, particularly rural populations dependent on rain-fed agriculture, pastoralism, and forest resources. This review synthesizes scientific evidence on observed and projected climate trends and insights in Southern Africa, highlighting a regional warming of approximately 1.5 °C since the early twentieth century above the global average, with further warming of 1.5–3 °C projected by mid-century under moderate emissions scenarios. These climatic shifts are compounded by land degradation, desertification and unsustainable land use, particularly in semi-arid zones. Weak governance, insecure land tenure and limited access to climate information further constrain regional adaptive capacity. A key insight emerging from this review is the persistent gap between scientific knowledge and practical land stewardship. While initiatives like the Southern African Science Service Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL) have made significant progress in enhancing climate data infrastructure, modelling and regional collaboration, the integration of these insights into adaptive land management strategies remains uneven and often disconnected from policy and community-level action. SASSCAL’s regional model offers a blueprint for coordinated, data-driven and transdisciplinary approaches to land and climate governance. By aligning scientific insights with locally grounded stewardship, Southern Africa can develop robust, inclusive strategies to safeguard ecosystems, ensure food and water security and build climate resilience in the face of accelerating environmental change.