The OCF was founded to unify, coordinate and promote environmental conservation in the Overstrand region so that the community will own and live by a common conservation vision, ethos and management plan; this summarises the Foundation's mission and vision statements.

Since its founding, the OCF has adopted the view that the sustainability principle provides the unifying basis for the achievement of environmental conservation and that  achievement of one-planet / sustainable lifestyles is the common vision and ethos to which the Overstrand region must aspire. This has led to the adoption of four guiding principles that underpin the OCF's philosophy.

Strategically, the OCF has 4 focus areas, each with its own strategic objective, that it uses as the vehicles for trasformation towards achieving one-planet / sustainable lifestyles in the region:

• Eco-Information
• Eco-Learning
• Eco-Management
• Eco-Employment

The platform from which the OCF plans to operate in these focus areas is an Eco-Resource Network comprising of an Eco-Resource Centre, run by OCF staff and volunteers, in a mutual support relationship with satelite Eco-Centres operated by member organisations in local community areas throughout the region.

While the OCF's work is centred in the Overstrand, its operations extend into the Overberg and beyond.