In response to global climate change, harnessing the climate-adaptive wisdom of vernacular dwellings is crucial for sustainable architectural design. This study takes Haiyan Village in the Kunming plateau area as a case study, focusing on three typical vernacular dwelling types of Yikeyin—‘Half seal’, ‘One seal’, and ‘Two seals’. Using Ladybug and Honeybee within the Rhino Grasshopper platform, a quantitative comparative analysis was conducted to evaluate their natural ventilation efficiency (characterized by Air Changes per Hour, ACH) and indoor thermal comfort (characterized by Predicted Mean Vote, PMV, and Predicted Percentage of Dissatisfaction, PPD). The results indicate the following: (1) Throughout the year, the ‘Two seals’ dwelling type exhibits the most stable diurnal temperature variation, while the ‘Half seal’ dwelling type shows the greatest fluctuation in its diurnal temperature range. (2) The summer ACH values for ‘Half seal’, ‘One seal’, and ‘Two seals’ dwelling types are 3.8~4.5, 1.5~2.9, and 0.8~1.6, while the winter values are 1.9~2.6, 1.3~1.8, and 0.7~1.0. The ventilation efficiency in summer is generally higher than that in winter, and it shows a significant decreasing trend as building volume increases. (3) The summer PPD values for ‘Half seal’, ‘One seal’, and ‘Two seals’ dwelling types are 12%, 18%, and 35%, while the winter values are 22%, 15%, and 12%. (4) The ‘One seal’ dwelling type exhibits good ventilation and thermal comfort throughout the year. The ‘Half seal’ demonstrates the best ventilation and thermal comfort in summer but poorer thermal comfort in winter. The ‘Two seals‘ dwelling type achieves the best thermal comfort in winter, but lower ventilation efficiency, while in summer, both thermal comfort and ventilation are poor. This study not only addresses the gap in the quantitative assessment of climate adaptability in vernacular dwellings but also provides critical data support and a theoretical basis for the scientific preservation, adaptive renewal, and sustainable inheritance of vernacular architecture in the context of climate change.

Low-latitude plateau classrooms, such as those in Kunming, experience intense solar radiation that often causes insufficient far-window illumination, excessive near-window brightness, and viewing-direction glare under side-lighting conditions. To investigate this spatial imbalance, field surveys of nine classrooms were used to define realistic parameter ranges, while 100 parametric design cases were evaluated through annual simulation, machine learning, and SHAP analysis. The viewing-direction glare model achieved a test-set R² of 0.819, indicating adequate predictive performance for factor interpretation. Compared with simply increasing the window-to-wall ratio (WWR), coordinated control of classroom geometry, window configuration, and surface reflectance produced a more balanced luminous environment. Daylight availability and excessive illuminance were primarily governed by WWR and window reveal depth, whereas glare was more strongly influenced by seating position, viewing direction, window width, and orientation. Classroom-wide averages may therefore conceal localized glare experienced by students. A moderate WWR of 0.26–0.40 combined with a window reveal depth of 0.75–1.17 m emerged as a preferable strategy within the investigated design space. These findings support desktop-level daylight assessment and student-perspective glare evaluation in the design and renewal of ordinary side-lit classrooms in Kunming and comparable low-latitude plateau regions.