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Background and problem: The concept of sustainability and sustainable development is a broad issue that can be interpreted in many ways. Sustainable development is not only about our environment but also involves social, cultural, and economic issues. In 2023 the Eurobarometer showed that 50 % of the Swedish population consider the environment and climate change the most important issues in Europe today. Media is a cultural entity that can influence people’s perceptions and actions. Therefore, it is relevant how journalists and the media engage with the sustainability issue and how sustainability terminology is managed in media.

Purpose: No previous study on Swedish sustainability communication in newspapers has been found in the literature. This study is addressed to close this research gap concentrating on trends and patterns of how sustainability is communicated in major Swedish newspapers.

Method:  The study is based on mixed research methods by analyses from a media database from the library of Uppsala University. The cornerstones of the research are framing theories and text analysis methods.

Conclusion: There has been a drop in sustainability communication in Swedish newspapers since the year 2021. The downtrend is major in newspapers aligned with the governing parties. The drop is more evident in national newspapers than in regional papers. Swedish newspapers do not connect sustainable development to social or cultural activities to the same extent as to economic and political activities.  The cultural knowledge regarding sustainability is not “renewed” but remains within the domains of classical economic theory and citizens participation is limited.