Adan likes to say that his 30+ years as a librarian really started in El Paso when he discovered the public library as recent immigrant, long before his 1988 University of Wisconsin-Madison (MLIS) graduate degree.

At Stanford his work has centered on acquiring and providing access to resources (primary and secondary, print and digital) covering a broad geographic area: Latin America, Spain, Portugal and the Latina/o, Latinx experience in the United States. Global LGBT issues are also part of Adan’s professional portfolio, and he administers a Facebook group for the Sexualities Section of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA).

He keeps an dynamic online presence to reach students beyond the Library’s walls: both in English and Spanish. As part of its extensive outreach programs, the Center for Latin American Studies also include Adan’s workshops on integrating Library resources into the K-12 and community college curriculum.

Adan was part of the initial 2002 group of Library Journal’s Movers & Shakers and has been an active book fair participant in Latin America and Spain. He has reported on these book buying experiences for the Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials (SALALM).