Enhancing daylighting in heritage buildings is a complex challenge that requires a delicate balance between preserving architectural integrity and improving visual comfort. This paper investigates enhancing daylight in heritage buildings, balancing preservation and visual comfort. It focuses on a 1905 heritage building undergoing reconstruction, addressing insufficient daylight on the ground floor and glare on the first floor. The study investigated novel design solutions by using simulation and optimization approaches. A multi-objective optimization algorithm, called JDEMO Algorithm (a multi-objective self-adaptive differential evolution algorithm), was utilized to obtain Pareto optimal results, and integrated with performative simulations using ClimateStudio (CS) plug-in for Grasshopper. Strategies include altering skylight glazing materials, surface materials, and using Tubular Daylight Guidance Systems (TDGS). Results show TDGS with larger diameters improve Useful Daylight Illuminance (UDI) and reduce Spatial Disturbing Glare (sDG). Material selection impacts daylight distribution, emphasizing the importance of skylight glazing materials. While specific to one case, this research has wider implications for heritage preservation and daylighting. By innovating sustainable design, it contributes to preserving heritage buildings while enhancing visual comfort.

The use of daylight in educational settings has a significant impact on the well-being, attention, and academic achievement of students. However, providing adequate daylighting without glare can be difficult, especially in deep-plan layout classrooms, because daylight is not constant and its strength varies with distance from the façade, necessitating the use of additional solutions frequently. In this study, tubular daylight guidance systems (TDGS) and movable shading devices are proposed to increase daylight availability in the Yaşar University Faculty of Architecture Temporary Studio, which has a deep plan layout and receives daylight only from the southeast facade. The objective was to meet the LEED daylight evaluation requirements for each zone, which require sDA to be at least 55% and ASE to be at most 10% in the selected analysis area. To propose TDGS and movable shadings with the most efficient angles and positions; Rhinoceros, Grasshopper, and Climate Studio were used, and simulation results were validated by real-time measurements. The design proposal simulation results achieved a significant increase in daylight availability in the rear part of the room (zone 2-3), while glare was diminished near the façade (zone1). The proposed design strategy improved daylight availability through the room, demonstrating that the systems perform well together.

It is known that the elderly usually spend the last years of their lives indoors, with little contact with others and the outside environment. Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) conditions related to lighting, air quality, thermal comfort, and acoustics directly affect their quality of life. In this study, the main focus is on the design of institutional care rooms for elderly people to create an indoor comfort. However, considering all four factors of IEQ in one model is a challenging task. A multi-objective problem is formulated based on a weighted sum of IEQ components in a parametric modelling environment using computational design methods. Several simulation tools are utilised, and a Self-Adaptive Ensemble Differential Evolution Algorithm is proposed to tackle this complex problem. The results show that optimal ranges for each IEQ component are achieved, with average values reaching 72% of the ideal benchmarks after the algorithm is converged. Results reveal strong correlations between IEQ components. This significant improvement in indoor environmental quality (IEQ) demonstrates the efficacy of the optimisation algorithm used. This study emphasises the flexibility and relevance of these findings for wider implementation in similar settings.

In considering total building energy consumption, lighting plays an important role in shaping energy consumption and use. Although key strategies (such as energy efficient lighting products, lighting control systems and energy simulation software) are developed so far, such attempts may be unsuccessful unless users are not taken into consideration. Users’ behaviours and their manual lighting control actions depend on various factors, though within the scope of this study manual lighting control behaviour was analysed only in terms of interior layout and daylight illuminance. Three private offices in Izmir Institute of Technology were monitored using illuminance metres and occupancy/light detectors under eight different interior layout conditions. In relation to change of interior layout and daylight penetrations, users’ manual lighting control behaviours were monitored. The obtained data were then used to construct a fuzzy logic model in MATLAB FIS editor. A fuzzy logic algorithm was applied to classify behaviour patterns about the tendency to turn on the lights. This kind of prediction of the light usage tendency regarding the occupancy is aimed to foresee the ‘possible’ manual lighting control behaviour within given conditions. The gathered classification can be used further in future studies of manual lighting control behaviour and energy-saving estimations/simulations.

Elderly adults experience physical and cognitive deterioration, which makes them more dependent on others for their daily needs. It is not always possible to provide adequate care in their own homes, emphasizing the crucial need for qualified residential care facilities (RCFs). Given that elderly spend most of their time indoors, it's crucial to provide a good indoor environment quality (IEQ) at RCF. Using the PRISMA scoping review approach, this study seeks to review the body of knowledge about IEQ elements of RCFs. A keyword search yielded 1044 possible papers; however, after removing irrelevant articles and duplications, only 94 papers remained to be reviewed. A snowball search was used to add 32 papers, and finally 126 papers were included in this paper.

With the growing urgency to reduce carbon emissions in the built environment, enhancing daylight availability in historic buildings has become a critical and challenging task due to the required balance between environmental sustainability objectives and cultural heritage conservation principles. This paper presents a systematic and critical review of 54 studies focusing on daylight enhancement strategies in historic buildings, published between 2000 and 2025. Following the PRISMA scoping review method, this review investigates intervention challenges according to three primary constraints: regulatory and conservation limitations, material and structural constraints, and climate-responsive requirements. By mapping currently employed daylighting techniques in historic buildings and critically assessing their underlying assumptions, this study aims to bridge the gap between performance-driven daylighting research and cultural heritage preservation principles. The findings are intended to promote multidisciplinary discourse and serve as a basis for creating contextually acceptable, ethically responsible, and technically feasible daylighting recommendations for historic buildings.