J. R. McNeill, Something New Under the Sun: An Environmental History of the Twentieth-Century World (New York: Norton, 2001).
Recommended for its eye-opening exposition of humanity’s effect on the earth in the past century.

David C. Korten, When Corporations Rule the World (Sterling, VA: Kumarian Press/Berrett-Koehler, 2001), pp. 16–17.
Recommended for its penetrating review of the devastating effect of global capitalism on the human experience.

Thom Hartmann, The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight (New York: Three Rivers Press, 2004).
A staggering assessment of the damage modern civilization is inflicting on our environment and our future.

James Gustave Speth, The Bridge at the Edge of the World: Capitalism, the Environment, and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008).
A sobering appraisal from a veteran environmentalist on the environmental implications of our current global system.

Johan Rockström et al., “A Safe Operating Space for Humanity,” Nature 461, no. 24 (September 2009): 472–75.
An important paper that has helped frame current thinking about how humanity’s actions are threatening the stability of the earth system.