Proposal: Adopt Discord for community communication

Proposal: Adopt Discord for community communication and pause use of all community Google Groups for a 6-month trial period 

Date: 2025-08-24

Background Summary

For over a decade, the community has used Google Groups as a primary mode of communication. Some (but not all) committees have their own Google Group. However, this system has some limitations. Many members dislike the "all-or-nothing" nature of Google Group emails, where it's not possible to choose which types of messages you receive. Additionally, various informal group chats exist across the community, which often need to be re-created whenever someone joins or leaves a committee.

Discord is a well-established, 10 year old platform used by online communities, workplaces, businesses, non-profits, and educational institutions.  

How this proposal intends to address the issue

This proposal suggests adopting a WaCoHo Discord server as a unified communication platform. Discord would allow community members to see and participate in committee activities in one place, eliminating the need for multiple Google Groups and group chats. Each member would be able to customize their notification preferences, choosing which conversations they wish to follow closely. Sessions would be held to help people get signed up, hosted by community members like Emily, Michael, Kellie, Tysic, and Ben.

Pros:

• Free: Discord is free to use

• Customizable opt-in notifications: members can stay informed about topics they care about and mute the rest, reducing email overload

• Greater transparency: Members can easily stay aware of what’s happening in the community without needing to join every group or be part of every conversation

• Simplified group management: No more recreating group chats when committee membership changes

• Flexibility: Discord’s channels, forums, and threads can be adjusted over time to match the evolving needs of the community

• Many community members are already familiar with Discord and/or similar platforms

Cons:

• Learning curve - Discord will be new to many community members and will take time to get used to

• Not everyone may want to use it