Dulce dos Prazeres Fidalgo Álvaro Pássaro was born in the municipality of Oliveira do Hospital in Coimbra district on 23 November 1953.

In 1977 she was admitted as a senior officer of the Portuguese civil service, being appointed as head of the waste division of the General Directorate for Environmental Quality, and subsequently as the director of the waste and recycling service.

She worked on legislation to combat maritime pollution, and participated in the drafting of the first national water quality law, the national waste plan, and strategic plans for industrial and hospital waste management.

[1][2][3] From March 2003 to October 2009, Pássaro was a member of the board of directors of the Instituto Regulador de Aguas e Residuos (Regulatory Institute of Water and Waste).

A supporter of the Portuguese Socialist Party (PS), she was appointed Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning of the XVIII Constitutional Government in October 2009.