It is right that the analysis of how our climate has changed is properly rooted in documented science. Similar rigour should be applied to whether, and how, this issue is included in the curriculum. The claim that climate change is a “peripheral subtopic” in geography is simply not supported by the evidence (Teachers demand emphasis on climate change in curriculum, 22 February).

For example, the statutory geography national curriculum requires that pupils study how our climate has changed from the ice age to the present. In addition, pupils should also understand how human and physical processes interact to influence and change landscapes, environments and the climate; and how human activity relies on effective functioning of natural systems.

Comparable requirements are also included in geography GCSE and A-level courses, which are studied by 250,000 and 35,000 pupils respectively each year.

By combining study of the physical and human worlds, geography provides a unique context to study how our climate is changing and how we might adapt to and mitigate against the changes; an education that all pupils deserve and that geography can provide.

Steve Brace

Head of education and outdoor learning, Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)

• Join the debate – email guardian.letters@theguardian.com

• Read more Guardian letters – click here to visit gu.com/letters

• Do you have a photo you’d like to share with Guardian readers? Click here to upload it and we’ll publish the best submissions in the letters spread of our print edition