Interforum

Interforum is a term used to describe the practice or infrastructure for connecting multiple discussion forums to enable interaction, information exchange, and coordinated governance across communities. It can refer to formal networks of partner forums that share guidelines and resources, as well as to commonplace cross-posting and linkage between separate sites within a broader ecosystem. The term derives from Latin inter- meaning between and forum meaning a public place of discussion.

In practice, interforum arrangements may include cross-posting policies, shared moderation standards, centralized event calendars, and interoperable content services. Technical implementations range from simple cross-post links and synchronized feeds to federation-style bridges that allow posts, threads, or user identities to be recognized across forums while preserving authorship and licensing. The aim is to reduce duplication, improve topic coverage, and encourage collaboration without forcing a single platform.

Governance is a key consideration, typically involving consensus-based guidelines on allowed topics, privacy, copyright, and attribution. Interforum coordination may be overseen by an interforum council, a moderator coalition, or a designated liaison team. Communities weigh benefits such as broader reach and resource sharing against risks like policy inconsistency, spam, or data protection concerns.

Use cases commonly occur in hobby, academic, or gaming communities, where multiple forums discuss related subjects and occasional joint events, research projects, or curated portals are desirable.

See also: cross-posting, federation (online communities), intercommunity collaboration, online moderation, knowledge sharing.