Grey Rhino Event:
Kerala’s Wayanad landslide (July 2024) has been described as a “grey rhino event” by scientists in the report Sliding Earth, Scattered Lives (Sept 2025), highlighting how policymakers ignored years of warnings about ecological fragility and rainfall risks. A “grey rhino” is a highly probable, high-impact event that is visible and foreseeable but often neglected until it causes catastrophic damage. It contrasts with “black swan events” (rare, unpredictable) and focuses on obvious but ignored risks. Concept Developed by Coined by Michele Wucker, a U.S.-based policy analyst, in her 2016 book The Gray Rhino: How to Recognize and Act on the Obvious Dangers We Ignore.
