Sustainability as a Professional Value in Public Relations: A Qualitative Analysis of Industry Discourse

Abstract

Sustainability has gained recognition as a lodestone toward which professional communication work, including public relations (PR), should ideally aim. While sustainability is often seen in context of corporate strategy or environmental responsibility, its integration within PR practice itself remains underexplored. This study examines how sustainability is framed and embedded in contemporary public relations practice through qualitative content analysis of three widely cited industry documents: a professional association report (PRCA/PRCAI), a global PR thought leadership report (Edelman Trust Barometer), and a corporate communication sustainability report (Cisco). UNSDGs are taken as a normative reference framework to identify and interpret sustainability-related themes. The unit of analysis includes report sections and paragraphs that explicitly or implicitly refer to ethics, responsibility, transparency, stakeholder engagement, trust, or long-term communication impact. The findings indicate that sustainability is increasingly articulated as a professional value in PR practice rather than merely as an external corporate objective. While social and ethical dimensions of sustainability receive significant emphasis;  environmental sustainability appears more selectively and is often addressed indirectly. The analysis further reveals that sustainability is positioned as essential to maintaining credibility, public trust, and long-term organizational legitimacy. The study contributes to sustainability communication scholarship by demonstrating how PR as a profession is redefining its role through sustainability-oriented discourse.