Stephen Downes (born April 6, 1959) is a Canadian philosopher and commentator in the fields of online learning and new media.

[1] He gave the 2004 Buntine Oration[2] and was a presenter at the February 2007 Online Connectivism Conference.

[6] He is Editor at Large of the International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning.

[7] Downes ran for Mayor of Brandon in 1995, when he was working at the Assiniboine Community College.

A member of the New Democratic Party, he ran on a platform to the left of incumbent mayor Rick Borotsik.