A Discussion item on the Interoperable Europe Portal allows the exchange of ideas, opinions, and information among registered users of the platform. Users can gather feedback, share experiences, and keep an open record of conversations on specific topics, such as open-source software, digital government, interoperability, and digital transformation in public administrations.
⚠️ Important note: to start a Discussion, you must first be a member of a Collection or Solution. In this document we will refer to Collections and Solutions as “spaces”.
Step 1: Start a new Discussion
First, make sure you are signed in to the Portal. Then go to the Collection or Solution you’re a member of and add a Discussion by selecting the orange “+” icon at the top right of the page.
A menu will appear, allowing you to choose from different content types. Select “Add discussion”.
Step 2: Fill in the Discussion form
A form will open where you must provide the details of your new Discussion. The following fields are mandatory:
- Title: the main subject of your Discussion. It should clearly reflect the topic you wish to raise.
- Content: the body of your Discussion. Here you can explain the issue, provide context, or ask a question.
- Topic: select the most relevant topic from the predefined list. This helps users find your Discussion.
In addition, you can enrich your Discussion with optional elements:
- Search keywords: add relevant keywords to improve the visibility of your Discussion in searches.
- Logo: upload an image to visually identify your Discussion.
- Attachments: add supporting files (e.g. documents, presentations…).
Step 3: Propose your Discussion
Selecting Propose will send the Discussion for review and publication. All spaces on the Portal are moderated, so the item needs to be approved by the space’s manager before it is published. Once approved, your Discussion will be published and visible to other users.
If you are not yet ready to propose your discussion, you can save it as a draft. Choosing Save as draft will privately store the Discussion so you can return later to edit and finalise.
Step 4: Interact with a published Discussion
Once your Discussion is published, users can engage with it in several ways.
At the bottom of each Discussion, the following actions are available:
- Report abusive content: notify the Portal Team if a contribution violates the Contribution Rules.
- Invite: available only to space moderators, facilitators and discussion owner, who can invite other registered users to join the Discussion.
- Share: distribute the Discussion on social networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and X. You can also share it directly to Collections or Solutions to which you are already subscribed.
- Follow: subscribe to receive notifications whenever someone comments on the Discussion.
Use the comment box at the bottom of the page to add your contribution. You can also reply directly to other comments. The option Post as anonymous is available if you do not want your name displayed.
Discussion vs the Forum page
Access all Portal Discussions from a single space: the Forum. From there, you can browse active conversations and access the Collection/Solution where each discussion is hosted.
Do you have any question?