Wow...this is a great thread. I have been living a minimalist lifestyle for about a decade now, though we can always do more. I find that I meet people while travelling that inspire me.
When the thing that is the most important in your life is in jeopardy, you will realize that material goods are not a priority. That is how I felt during my divorce when my visitation and time with my daughter was reduced to a minimum.
My greatest inspiration has come from Thoreau - Walden is the ultimate source for taking on the attitude of a minimalist. Ghandi is another famous minimalist, though I'm not suggesting following either of these lifestyles, choose the balance you need.
The web has been full of great resources, though I have spent 10 years accumulating websites and tools. Here are a few, unfortunately I have hundreds and can't share them all. I'm working on a green directory, actually two green directories as a project for the year end - they will be listed there eventually. I am situated in Toronto, Canada but these resources are pretty useful.
Freegan AND
Why Work? Be Green Now AND
Best Green Blogs New American Dream OR
Planet Friendly TreeHugger AND try
Hugg 2.0 All Things Frugal PLUS
Frugal Corner The Simple Living Network AND
Simply Living One Planet Living AND
100 Ways to Save the Environment Think Simple Now
You will note that a lot of these are promoting a green lifestyle, that is because a green lifestyle truly promotes the idea of limiting consumer habits and offers a greater chance of happiness, as many of the people on Steve Pavlina's website have come to seek.
I hope I didn't put too many links on here. If I did, tell me how I can change them. NONE OF THEM ARE MINE (oh, except for the two in my signature) but they are all excellent sources to get started. I have hundreds more but I hand chose a few, it took me a little while.
Enjoy.