Sustainability communication has gained attention as both a practical and academic field, although it is still an emerging area globally and in Japan. While major Japanese companies have strengthened their efforts—often by establishing dedicated sustainability promotion or communication departments—academic research in this area still developing. In 2021, the Japan Society for Corporate Communication Studies established a specialized division on “Sustainability Communication,” signaling growing institutional recognition. However, existing research papers in general have focused primarily on disclosure frameworks rather than communication strategies, leaving a gap in understanding how organizations actively construct sustainability narratives. This gap is particularly important given that there is no existing research tracing how sustainability communication in Japan has evolved over time, and systematic scholarship on this topic remains limited. Addressing this absence, this study analyzes two Japanese magazines: Kōhō Kaigi, a leading professional magazine on public relations, and Alterna, a magazine dedicated to sustainable business. Employing a mixed-method design, the quantitative analysis tracks annual article frequency and conducts corpus-based keyword analysis of headlines using KH Coder, Japanese-developed corpus analysis software while the qualitative analysis involves close reading and thematic categorization of relevant articles. Conceptualizing magazines as mirrors of their era, the study finds a clear shift in Japan from CSR-oriented declarative narratives toward sustainability communication integrated into corporate management strategy, human capital management, and organizational decision-making.
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