Australian eye health pioneer Professor Brien Holden has been remembered as a unique and inspiring leader around the world.

Professor Holden died suddenly last Monday, aged 73.

He was best known for co-develop silicone hydrogel contact lenses, which now make over half of all contacts used worldwide.

He was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in 1997 for his work in eye health and science.

Kovin Naidoo, CEO of the Brien Holden Vision Institute at UNSW, has told the ABC that Professor Holden was much-loved as a humanitarian, researcher and entrepreneur.

“Beyond that he was also one of the most loving and supportive [people] you can ever think of working with,” he said.

“He made sure that the research that we do would generate the income to serve humanitarian causes, particularly blindness prevention.”

Professor Naidoo said that as a research, the optometrist always put people first.

“It wasn't about just developing a new design, it was developing a better product that could serve people better,” he said.

“I think that's what made him unique in many ways and therefore the outcomes were always outcomes that impacted significantly on people.”

Professor Naidoo his silicone lens is now the “gold standard” for contacts, and have provided hundreds of millions of dollars for more research.

The silicone design removed many previous complications caused by poor wearing and bad hygiene.

“It made lenses safer and healthier and I think for him he was always driven by that,” Professor Naidoo said.

The Brien Holden Vision Institute has been operating in Africa, the Americas, Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, South Asia and the Western Pacific, and is known for employing local workers to educate and empower developing communities.

“[Professor Holden said] Africans should do it for themselves, we are here to be supportive. And I think that's one of [his] most significant legacies,” Professor Naidoo said.

Dr Tony Adams, Professor Emeritus of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of California Berkley said Professor Holden brought people together to achieve unbelievable advances.

“He saw possibilities no-one else saw and made them happen,” he said.

“Truly a remarkable colleague and world figure.”