Roger G. H. Downer

FEJ Fry Gold medal of Canadian Society of Zoologists, Gold medal of Entomological Society of Canada, Doctor of Science (honoris causa) University of Waterloo, Doctor of Laws (honoris causa), Queens University of Belfast, Fellow of Royal Society of Canada, Member of the Royal Irish Academy. A collection of Professor Downer's speeches as president of the University of Limerick "Reflections from the Shannon" (Wordwell Press, 2007) was published at the time of his retirement.

At the University of Waterloo, Downer was head of the Department of Biology, as well as acting dean of science, and vice-president, external, and he has served also as president and chief executive, Asian Institute of Technology (1996-1998); president and vice-chancellor, University of Limerick (1998-2006). During his tenure at the University of Limerick, there was marked increase in student numbers and research productivity (postgraduate student numbers, research income and research output), he oversaw substantial physical expansion of the university and a new postgraduate entry medical school was announced one month after his retirement.

Downer married Jean Taylor, a physiotherapist, on 2 April 1966. They had three children, Kevin, Kathleen and Tara, and eight grandchildren.

Roger G. H. Downer (21 December 1942 – 19 November 2022) was an Irish educator, scientist, and writer who held a number of non-executive positions on private and public sector boards. He was a president emeritus at the University of Limerick and a distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo.

Downer was born in Belfast on 21 December 1942 to Leslie and Edith Downer. He was educated at the Methodist College Belfast, Queen's University Belfast (B.Sc. 1963, M.Sc., 1967, D.Sc. 1984) and University of Western Ontario (Ph.D. 1970).