The search for nine contestants to take part in Brighton and Hove's version of Big Brother has begun.

Launched today, "ninelives" will be putting nine ordinary people on show on the internet instead - not to make them famous but to turn them green.

The nine "stars" will be coached by experts in subjects including gardening, energy efficiency and healthy eating. They will each receive a digital camcorder to record the highs and lows of their efforts to lead more sustainable lifestyles and their video diaries will appear on a website for nine weeks.

Viewers will not be able to vote off their least favourite characters. Instead they will pick up tips on making their own lives more sustainable from the nine participants.

The initiative, believed to be the first of its sort, follows last year's Local Government Act which gave councils the duty to produce a community sustainability strategy. The Government has also asked councils to produce a Local Agenda 21 strategy, a blue print for sustainability for the 21st Century.

A Brighton and Hove City Council spokesman said: "In our bid for city status we said we wanted to be a sustainable city. But most people don't have a clue what sustainability means.

"We want people to stop thinking about the council as a big bureaucracy which takes the council tax and doesn't sweep the streets and start thinking how it can help them live a better life.

"Through the businesses and organisations we can put them in touch with they can stop smoking, walk their kids to school and reduce the electricity they use by insulating their roof."

Council leader Ken Bodfish believes the council itself cannot improve the city's environment. He believes helping individuals to lead more sustainable lives will help the notion catch on. He said: "Too often people have been treated as if they are alike. We are taking the realities of their lives into account and getting them to make pragmatic changes."

Paul Morgan, the chef at Terre a Terre, the vegetarian restaurant, will be giving advice on how to avoid ready meals, genetically modified ingredients and out-of-season produce.

He said: "A lot of foods we have now may not be here in ten or 15 years because of changes in farming methods and over-reliance on imports. I want to make people aware of that but also to show them food should be enjoyable and preparation should not be a chore."

Kim Jackson, a council environmental education officer, will be coaching some of the nine participants in waste reduction.

She said: "People can reduce the amount of waste they use by 50 per cent by recycling, using cotton nappies and cutting down on the amount of packaging they buy."

The website will feature weekly competitions and quizzes and 99 locals will be offered the chance of a free career and personal development programme.

The public will be able to email comments to the website - www.ninelives.tv - and there will also be online advice about green issues.

The deadline for applications from people who would like to become one of the nine is July 3 and the nine weeks is expected to start in September.

They must be aged 16 or over and live in Brighton or Hove. Application forms will be available on Brighton and Hove buses, libraries, town halls, Churchill Square, in the Argus and on the ninelives web site.