Born in Manitoba, Howard A. Steppler graduated from the University of Manitoba with a B.Sc (Agriculture) in 1941. He served in the Canadian army during the Second World War. He married Phyllis in 1945 and they had two children, Helen and Glenn. He attended Macdonald College, McGill University where he received a M.Sc. in Agronomy in 1948 and a PhD in Agronomy and Statistics in 1955. He became an associate professor of Agronomy in 1949 and a full professor in 1958. He was active in Canadian agricultural research organizations and was the president of the Canadian Society of Agronomy, 1957-1958 and the Agricultural Research Institute of Canada 1964-1965.

He held several administrative positions at Macdonald College including chair of the Department of Agronomy, later renamed Plant Science, from 1976-1984, and Associate Dean (Research). He was chair of various Macdonald College building committees including a Senate sub-committee. In 1987 he was the chair of the Macdonald 2000 committee formed to develop a strategic plan for the college. He also commanded the McGill Canadian Officers Training Corps (C.O.T.C.) contingent. He retired in 1984 as an Emeritus professor.

Steppler’s academic interests were in the area of agricultural research on both the national and the international stages. A strong advocate for the improvement of the lives of those in rural areas, he served as an advisor to international research groups, and produced numerous research reports and academic articles. He also sat on boards of international research agencies and foundations. These organizations included the International Council for Research in Agro-Forestry (ICRAF) where he served as Interim Director General 1980- 1981, member of the Board of Trustees, 1984-1991, and chair, 1985-1991. A member of the International Rice Research Institute Board of Trustees, 1988- 1993 and chair of the program committee, 1989-1993, he also served on the Board of Trustees of Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT), Columbia, 1972-1978 and the Agricultural Development Council in New York, 1976-1978. He was also on the Board of Trustees of the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) and was the founding director of Southern African Centre for Co-ordination of Agricultural Research (SACCAR).

Howard A. Steppler also served as an advisor for agricultural research programs and undertook several studies including the ICRAF Brazil Mission in 1979 to develop a strategy for an agro-forestry research program in Latin America, a visit to the International Development Research Centre to identify forestry research priorities in 1976, and a trip to EARTH, Costa Rica, to identify education and research opportunities in 1995.

He received numerous awards in recognition of his activities including the International Recognition Award of the Agricultural Institute of Canada for “his outstanding contributions to the development of agriculture in the third world”.