Climate vulnerability in semi-arid regions is increasingly shaped by the interaction of land-use change, vegetation stress, climate variability, settlement expansion and weak land-management systems. This study examines how local knowledge and decentralized land management can support climate-resilient built environment planning in Northern Jigawa State, Nigeria. The article links land-use pressure, vegetation change and climate variability with built-up expansion, permeable surface availability, settlement resilience and community knowledge in order to propose a co-created planning approach for sustainable built environment outcomes. The study adopted an integrated mixed-methods socio-spatial design using thesis-derived evidence from multitemporal Landsat imagery, NDVI analysis, land-use/land-cover classification, rainfall and temperature assessment, socioeconomic indicators, built-environment sustainability variables, interviews, focus group discussions and stakeholder observations. Findings indicate that population growth, agricultural expansion and infrastructure development have intensified pressure on land resources, contributing to vegetation decline, reduced surface permeability and increased exposure to heat stress, runoff and localized flooding risks. The results also show that rainfall variability and rising temperature interact with human land-use decisions to shape climate vulnerability. The study concludes that resilient built environment planning in semi-arid areas requires more than technical spatial planning; it demands the integration of geospatial evidence, local knowledge, decentralized land-use control, vegetation restoration and participatory environmental governance.