Abstract: Since the end of WWII the USA has transformed itself into a consumer society, with consumerism as a dominant lifestyle. It is a very stable complex system, which emerged through concerted efforts of the manufacturing sector, government policies, and organized labor. The ecological cost of this transformation has been high. Fundamental shifts need to take place in how people satisfy their needs and wants. The paper arrives at the hypothesis that that a collective reframing of people’s ideas of wellbeing as less fixated on materialism is necessary. It then considers how such a change might take place through bottom-up social forces, focusing on the link between consumption and wellbeing. We propose that the millennial generation might lead the way in that transition. Although this life would be materially scaled down, it would be richer in other ways: with a stronger sense of a community. The emerging New Economy movement may converge with this cultural transition.