DOUG JOHNSON: Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

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I'm Doug Johnson. On our program this week, we play new music from Moby...

And we answer questions about getting a green card.

But, first, we take a road trip with two bicycling brothers who are searching for community spirit in America.

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America Recycled

DOUG JOHNSON: Two American brothers are riding bicycles across the country in search of community. The brothers are documenting their experience through a blog, photographs and videos. And they say what they are finding is a desire for a return to community roots. Faith Lapidus has our story.

FAITH LAPIDUS: Noah and Tim Hussin have been on the road for more than six months. The brothers left the city of Asheville, North Carolina in early November. They have traveled more than sixteen hundred kilometers since then.

Noah lived overseas for three years. When he returned, he wanted to explore the United States.

Noah's brother, Tim, is a photographer and filmmaker. He also loves riding bicycles. He saw a chance to combine those interests and create something with his brother.

Since November, the Hussins have met Americans living in eco-villages, where people share values and responsibility in caring for the environment. The brothers have also met people working a city farm and those operating sustainable businesses.

Tim Hussin makes clear that he and his brother are really sharing in the lives of the people they meet.

TIM HUSSIN: "You know, it's not like we are staying nearby in a hotel or something, and just visiting every day or every other day. We are actually sleeping in their houses and eating breakfast with them. So, we have very much become a part of whatever we are documenting."

Noah says their trip began at a bicycle cooperative in Asheville. Co-op members make bicycles from used parts.

NOAH HUSSIN: "We discovered this bicycle co-op. You can come in there and just sort through a whole garage of old parts and they'll teach you how to basically build a bicycle from the scraps."

The Hussin brothers made a video at the bicycle co-op. They wanted to show how some Americans are turning away from years of globalization. Noah Hussin says this happening all across the United States.

NOAH HUSSIN: "Small communities are falling apart, whether it's towns that are losing their industry or whether it's just people choosing the life in suburbs where there isn't the cultural infrastructure to bring people together. We sense that a lot of people are kind of starting to lament that loss of community in this country."

The first stop for the brothers was at an urban homestead. This is a place where the people who live there produce everything they need themselves. The Hussins made a short film about the place. The homesteaders talk about how their way of life gives them a chance to follow their creative interests, like music, sewing, cooking or building.

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"Small community living has been lost in America. Families are much more isolated. Individuals are much more isolated. And I do think a lot is lost."

"People living sad lonely existences. Why do we have to do that to ourselves? We don't."

Tim Hussin says this North Carolina community is not alone.

TIM HUSSIN: "We have found there are a lot of people creating spaces for people to live the lives they want to lead and not the lives they've been taught they should lead."

The Hussin brothers are attempting to live sustainably during their travels. Noah Hussin says the people at the urban homestead taught them how to find food instead of buying it. Tim said there is plenty of free food out there if you know where to look.

TIM HUSSIN: "It blows my mind how much food grocery stores throw away."

Tim Hussin says he and his brother are discovering ways of living that are very different from how they were raised in Florida.

TIM HUSSIN: "There are a lot of interesting communities that I had no idea existed. And a lot of people that are really passionate about changing the way that we live. It's really exciting and inspiring to see all these communities working individually but also together as part of a larger movement."