The Interoperable Europe Portal revolves around Collections. Collections provide a distinct, easy way to group and access content that is related to a specific subject field or domain. Collections could also be considered as communities in which users collaborate around a common topic or domain, and where they can contribute by creating, sharing, and commenting on content, and engage in virtual discussions with the community. All created Portal content resides under a Collection (i.e., solutions, documents, news, events etc.).

Before creating a Collection, it is key to check whether there is already an existing Collection on the Portal hosting similar content. This is relevant: if related content is spread out in different Collections or communities, users will have difficulties to find the resources they are looking for. Additionally, managing a Collection entails the commitment of overseeing its moderation, updating frequently its content and engaging the community.

Consequently, and paradoxically, the first step when creating a Collection, is to go to the ‘advanced search page’. There you can type in the key word(s) that relate to your content and check the box of ‘Collection’ under content type filter. This is a quick and necessary check to avoid duplications. For instance, when researching for ‘eGovernment’, the filter shows that 35 Collections or communities related to that topic already exist. Some are general (eGovernment), while others are more specific, such as the Portuguese eGovernment Solution. If you think your content fits with one of these existing Collections, you can add it under them (check this How-To document to discover how). You should be able to find an existing Collection that aligns with your content needs, given the wide variety of Collections available on the portal. However, if you cannot find a suitable Collection, please contact us for assistance in creating a new Collection.