[Paper Kosmonaut]

The reason why so many young people aren't interested in (paper) modelling is I think quite easy to explain. Just look around you. Here in the Netherlands all of the younger people cannot take their ayes away from that stupid little screen of their smartphones. They can't leave them alone for one minute. They even do it while cycling for Pete's sake.
When you are young, I guess those screen-bound virtual connections with peers apparently is enough. Their hobbies (at least where I live) are mainly gaming, going out, 'netflix-and-chill' and the occasional sports.
Model making takes patience. Something lots of youngsters don't yet have, alt least not for model making. I guess that only when you get some spare time you can develop interests like this.
There are always exceptions to the rule, look at some of the teenagers and twentysomethings that are over here at the forum. But those are few and far between.

As for Gerard, being a fellow Dutchie I guess what he says is what he means. The Dutch are quite straightforward (to almost rude) in their honestness and I think Gerard is really sad seeing his models just downloaded, stored and not made. He wanted to call it quits a year or so back but then in the end it still was too much funto leave alone.
I guess he likes to share his creations but he has become reluctant because of the piracy issues. Something he can't do anything about except waking over his models and keep track somehow of who downloads them. I don't blame him for it but I cannot really see whether that actually helps.

@Dave: I know exactly what you mean about model railways. The trains are only a side issue. My dad had a model railway. N-gauge. He just laid out a grassy underlayer, laid out the rails and put some ugly looking little cardboard boxes as houses here and there. I was 6 or 7 and I was furious at my dad because that was not how it was supposed to look. There should have been a road, a couple of nice bungalows, shrubs, trees and a pond! I guess my dad was a real model train fan and I there and then came out as the model maker.