EUGENE, Ore. -- At the Maitreya EcoVillage in west Eugene Rob Bolman and Melanie Rios live among about 30 people who grow much of their food, get around on bicycles and air-dry their clothes.

Back in North Carolina the Rush family of three owns five SUVs.

The lifestyles could hardly be more different. But for nearly two weeks the wives of both families traded places for an ABC reality TV show, "Wife Swap," which is to air Monday night.

The Eugene couple says any humiliation that results is worth it if they can spread their message about sustainable living.

Even in ultra-green Eugene, their measures seem unusual.

Instead of toilet paper, there's a bidet in the bathroom. And when their compost pile gets a little dry in the summer, they moisten it with their own urine.

Bolman is a builder specializing in green construction. Rios is a musician who teaches workshops on climate change.

The eco-village includes a triplex and a two-story house, as well as cob-and-hay-bale structures, all designed and built by Bolman.

The two rarely watch television at all, and until they considered doing the show they had never seen an episode.

They learned of the show through an e-mail from a friend, who said producers were looking for people living in an eco-village, Rios said.

They thought it could be a good way to spread their message of using less and recycling more.

The $20,000 they were paid didn't hurt, but both say it wasn't the deciding factor.

Program producers made several visits to Eugene and paired the couple and Rios' teenage son with the North Carolina family.

It was challenging for both families, Rios and Bolman said.

The North Carolina wife, Sheila Rush, who normally spent most of her time caring for her family's six dogs, didn't like riding a bike in Eugene, eating garden-grown vegetables or using the bidet, Bolman said.

And Rios could have done without cleaning up after the six indoor dogs who were trained to relieve themselves on mats that had to be regularly cleaned.

Rush thought Rios' son, Skye, had a little too much freedom. Rios thought the North Carolina teen needed to express himself and take up the guitar even if his mom disapproved.

When she could change the rules, Rush bought vegetables at the store and drove Bolman and Skye around town in a Hummer.

Back in North Carolina, Rios let the dogs outside and got a compost pile started.

Reality shows have gained ground recently because they are cheap to produce and attract viewers, said Sharon Sherman, a University of Oregon English professor who specializes in folklore and documentary filmmaking.

She said "Wife Swap" fills the curiosity that drives some people to glance in the neighbors' lighted windows while driving down the street at night.

"We're vicariously looking into the lives of other people," Sherman said. "Wife Swap" allows a more penetrating view, she said.

How much of the Eugene couple's message comes through depends on the show's editors.

"Unless you're in control of a production, the message could easily be lost," Sherman said. Worse, the show could be edited in such a way that it turns people away from the message instead of drawing them in, she said.

"Wife Swap" Executive Producer Stef Wagstaffe said the show tries to be fair to both families.

Still, Bolman worries that he and Rios could come across looking like extremists, or just plain ridiculous.

Will the editors include Bolman's explanation of how manure is a common part of garden compost, and that human urine in compost is less harmful to the planet than natural-gas-fired plants using energy to create fertilizers?

Bolman doesn't know, but says if producers leave in just 10 percent of the couple's message and it reaches just 1 percent of the viewers, then it was worth it.

If they look silly to the rest of the country, so be it, he said.