Sustainability in Greek Cultural Organizations: Mapping Practices, Professional Views, and Digital Narratives

Digital platforms are one of the main forms of media used by cultural and creative industries (CCIs) to communicate sustainability, yet the alignment between institutional strategies and online narratives remains insufficiently explored. This study investigates how ten Greek cultural institutions—including museums, performing arts organizations, and cultural centers—represent their sustainability efforts online. A mixed-methods approach combined organizational mapping, content analysis of 1761 Facebook posts (January–September 2025), and targeted semi-structured interviews with four communication professionals within the sample. Results show a pronounced emphasis on social sustainability, highlighting accessibility, education, and community engagement, while environmental sustainability is under-represented despite significant investments in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and waste management. Economic sustainability receives moderate attention, primarily framed through transparency. Interviews reveal that institutions face challenges in translating environmental initiatives into compelling digital narratives due to audience preferences, storytelling limitations, and resource constraints. Findings also indicate that strategic sophistication varies according to organizational scale, governance, and capacity. By linking institutional practices with their online representation, this research provides insights into the communication–practice gap and offers guidance for managers and policymakers to foster more balanced, authentic, and multidimensional sustainability storytelling in the cultural sector.