<![CDATA[Amid the escalating global ecological crisis, there is an urgent need to understand how the institutional framework interacts with the transparency of public discourse (environmental communication) in promoting sustainable development. However, the existing literature often examines these two domains separately. This study aims to integrate the fields of institutional economics and environmental communication through systematic science mapping to identify emerging publication trends, intellectual structures, and key thematic clusters. The study employs a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method combined with Bibliometric Science Mapping Analysis. Following the PRISMA protocol and the PICO framework, a rigorous selection was conducted on metadata from the Scopus database for the 2020–2026 timeframe, resulting in a final sample of 31 key articles for qualitative analysis and visualization using VOSviewer software. Annual trend analysis indicates that the peak in scientific output occurred during the 2022–2023 period, driven by the strengthening of post-pandemic ESG regulations. The keyword co-occurrence analysis successfully identified three main thematic clusters: (1) the impact of regulatory intensity on CSR/ESG disclosure and the reduction of corporate capital costs; (2) the moderating role of institutional quality in the utilization of ICT and the digital economy to reduce carbon emissions; and (3) the management of communal natural resources (water, land, ecotourism) based on multi-stakeholder communication (Hexa Helix) and information transparency. This study concludes that environmental communication acts as an operational manifestation of informal institutions as well as a supervisory instrument for formal institutions. In practical terms, the transition toward sustainability requires not only strict legal regulations but also a transparent public discourse space and an accountable digital sphere to minimize the risk of greenwashing. ]]>
