Kerala, long regarded as a model of human development in the Global South, now confronts an intensifying triple challenge in the 21st century: climate change, food insecurity and livelihood vulnerability. Rising temperatures, erratic monsoons and an increased frequency of extreme weather events have fundamentally altered the state’s ecological and socio-economic landscape. These climatic shifts are no longer distant projections but lived realities that directly undermine agricultural productivity, disrupt marine ecosystems and destabilise rural incomes, thereby threatening the very foundations of food security and sustainable livelihoods. Agriculture, which remains predominantly rain-fed and dominated by smallholders, is very sensitive to climate variability. Paddy cultivation, once central to Kerala’s agrarian economy and food system, has witnessed a dramatic contraction in area. Today, Kerala heavily dependent on inter-state imports for rice and are vulnerable to supply shocks. The fisheries sector, faces parallel pressures from climate change. Livelihood vulnerability is compounded by the climate change impacts affects particularly for women and landless labourers. In response, Kerala has initiated a suite of policy measures, including the State Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC), the Kerala Climate-Resilient Agri-Value Chain Modernisation (KERA) project and the Kerala State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (K-SBSAP) 2025–2035. The 2026–27 budget allocates ₹2,071.95 crore to agriculture and allied sectors, with dedicated funding for climate-resilient agriculture, paddy revival missions and fisheries transformation. Thus, securing Kerala’s future demands an integrated, cross-sectoral approach that strengthens local food systems, diversifies and protects livelihoods, embeds equity and health in adaptation planning and scales up climate finance and innovation. The paper aims to examine the interlinkages among climate change, food security and livelihoods in Kerala. The choices made in this decade will determine whether Kerala navigates the 21st century through deepening vulnerability or emerges as a model of climate-resilient, inclusive and sustainable development for tropical regions worldwide.