Jessica Berry is founder and CEO of MAST. She is an author and maritime archaeologist MA (Hons) MA ACIfA. She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. She is a former journalist with UK broadsheets. MAST is a charity formed to address the gulf in the way our maritime underwater cultural heritage (UCH) is protected in contrast to terrestrial archaeology. It is considered a foremost maritime archaeological organisation in the UK, providing full-cycle maritime archaeological capability, from discovery, excavation and conservation to the museum door. MAST exists to fill a long overdue void in our understanding of our nation’s rich maritime heritage, to ensure that there is a sustainable future for such sites, through archaeology, research, study and dissemination. In partnership with OceanMind we have launched the Maritime Observatory, a novel, holistic approach to the deterrence of illegal activity at sea to combine both monitoring and detection of illegal fishing activities and the looting of known shipwreck sites.

MAST designed and runs the Basic Archaeological Diver course to instruct on the rudiments of maritime archaeology. It is delivered as a short PADI/BSAC course.

Berry is the archaeological advisor for the 1685 Coronation wreck in Cornwall. She is an HSE Scuba and HSE SSDE, a PADI Open Water Instructor and an SSI Instructor, holds a commercially endorsed Advanced Powerboat licence and the RYA YachtMaster Offshore qualification.