i second the recommendation of; "The Man Who Planted Trees" a book by Jean Giono, which has been made into a wonderful animated film in Canada. One of the parts of the story is that Elzéard Bouffier planted an oak forest single-handed, by planting acorns every day.
The area where he planted them had historically been a thriving community with water, fish and a village, but had gone dry after the trees were removed. this movie is a good inspiration for what one person can do.