Discourse

Freegle discussion forums on Discourse

Freegle's main discussion groups (for volunteers only) are on Discourse:

• https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/

Using Discourse should be straightforward, but here's some help. It works best on the web or using the Discourse app, but you can also use it by email if you prefer.

• Using Discourse
• Signing in
• How to create new topics and polls
• Menus, preferences and notifications
• Discourse using email
• Discourse app for phones and tablets
• Discourse moderation and privacy
• Discourse technicalities

Ask general questions on Central, techy questions on Tech, and so on. You don't need to join a group - just post a question in Tech if you want, and you'll see replies even if you're not following that group. You can start a topic on the website or by sending an email to one of the addresses below (from an email address registered as a member).

These discussion groups are on Discourse:

• Central - https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/central - discoursereplies+Central@ilovefreegle.org
• Tech & ModTools - https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/tech - discoursereplies+Tech@ilovefreegle.org
• Cafe - https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/cafe - discoursereplies+cafe@ilovefreegle.org
• Funding - https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/funding - discoursereplies+funding@ilovefreegle.org
• Development - https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/development - discoursereplies+development@ilovefreegle.org
• Freestock - https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/freestock - discoursereplies+freestock@ilovefreegle.org
• The Newbie Nook - on Discourse, a friendly, private space dedicated exclusively to newer moderators. Whether just joined us or are still finding their feet, it’s a quiet, low-pressure spot to share experiences, ask any questions (big or small!), and connect with other new mods who are in the same boat. Email chair@ilovefreeegle.org for an invite.

There's also one 'closed' group used to send important information to every Discourse account: Announcements. It's not open to replies (replies happen on the discussion groups above):

• https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/announcements

And a Playground group where you can ask questions about how to use Discourse:

• https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/c/playground - discoursereplies+playground@ilovefreegle.org

And annually opened groups for AGM discussion and AGM meetings from 2024.

Accessing your preferences

By default, you'll be emailed a daily summary of posts. Change this by clicking the user+cog icon (top right), then look in the "Emails" and "Notifications -> Groups" tabs.

• Changing settings
• Details of the user migration

Privacy-wise, you can post details of Freegle members if you need to, but avoid personal details where possible, and don't share any personal details outside the forums.

An "Us" Discourse icon appears within ModTools showing a count of notifications.

Watching more groups

To get emails about more groups, go to https://discourse.ilovefreegle.org/categories, click on the group you're interested in, then click the bell icon on the right and choose, for example, "Watching".

Example Discourse home page

You can configure what appears on the home page in Preferences -> Interface. Here's an example showing all groups with the latest posts on the right:

Hosting

From October 2025, Discourse hosting moved to Communiteq, having previously been self-hosted. See this Discourse thread for background.