ETV's "Pealtnägija" caught up with Lään last month during Vegan March, as he made breakfast sandwiches at home using vegan cheese and vegan sausage, paired with coffee and soy milk.

The goal of his year-long project: to see how closely one person can follow a more low-impact lifestyle.

The 26-year-old is quick to acknowledge his privilege, knowing such habits and lifestyle changes aren't accessible to everyone, but he's willing to test the changes on himself.

"I live in the capital, I'm single, young, I have a dog, no kids, and my job isn't super far away, so I'm extremely privileged," Lään said. "This experiment is really from the perspective of someone like me."

Environmentally conscious since childhood, Lään, who grew up in nearby Viimsi, has long found little ways to make Tallinn a little greener. He keeps packets of flower seeds in his pocket and scatters them around the city on walks, and has built over 50 "bug hotels," which are really little more than boxes of twigs and plant debris repackaged more attractively as insect habitats.

One of his biggest efforts yet, however, is his current year of monthly eco-living challenges.

'Never felt so clean in my life'

Despite weeks of unrelenting biting cold at the beginning of the year, Lään, a private tutor, gave up even electric scooters and the occasional cab for No Personal Transport January, committing fully to public transport and walking.

"I have a very kind boss, who wrote and invited me out to eat," he recalled. "They offered to pick me up at work so we could drive together, but I said no." Instead, they simply agreed on what time to meet, and he took the bus.

The change added nearly 26 hours of commuting compared with driving, but according to Lään's calculations, it saved 244 kilograms of CO2 and roughly €105. He's also since remained a more avid bus rider.

In February, Lään eliminated all single-use items: matches, coffee filters, cotton pads, receipts, sugar packets and even fast food meals served in single-use packaging.

Plastic wrap was replaced with beeswax wraps, disposable napkins with cloth handkerchiefs. He even stopped using toilet paper, switching to a bidet.

"I've never felt so clean in my life," he said, still happy about the purchase.

No vegan dog food

His dog, Küü, has also adapted: instead of disposable waste bags, Lään now carries free city district newspapers to pick up after his dog on walks, only carrying a single compostable bag for emergencies.

He hasn't compromised on his dog's hygiene, however, since Küü isn't just a pet; he accompanies Lään to work, where he needs to be clean when interacting with the kids at school.

No Single-Use February saved the activist nearly €95 and a calculated 11,000 liters of water on toilet paper production alone.

Vegan March wasn't hard for him to follow, though social situations sometimes proved tricky, like when snacks at a friend's birthday party led to awkward inquiries about ingredients.

Lään also had to ditch the beeswax wraps he'd started using the month before, since they aren't vegan, and faced a limited selection, overpackaging and concerns about missing nutrients. Küü, however, stayed on his regular dog food diet, which includes meat.

The month underscored the environmental cost of conventional food, which Lään says would have used 1.5 times more emissions, ten times more water and 25 times more land than vegan alternatives to produce — just to feed one person.

Contrary to popular belief, his vegan diet also only cost him €1 more.

More challenging months ahead

This month is Zero-Waste April, and Lään expects to face his first major challenges of the year. Looking ahead, he admits Buy Nothing June, Estonian Food September and Eco-Friendly Goods October may prove harder to stick to as well.

Regardless of the outcome, Lään avoids pushing his lifestyle on others. He approaches it with a near scientific curiosity, balancing environmental impact with practical limits for himself and his dog.

Many of his new habits are also here to stay, though he won't remain vegan. Lään's commitment to sustainability has also inspired him to look into the Integrated Natural Sciences program at Tallinn University (TLÜ), where long bus commutes would double as study time.

"I want honest answers and results," Lään said, noting he isn't trying to dismiss those who deem it impossible to reduce one's environmental impact.

"I want to show them it's been tried, that I tried it myself, and it is actually possible," he added. "Or, vice versa, that they're right and it isn't possible after all."

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