The rules need to be separated from the setting.
This can be easily done, like with the Traveller Starter Set or some kind of free quickstart rules.
New settings need to be created.
That's where we come in. If Traveller players have a setting they're creating, then they can put it up on Drivethru or something and see how well it does, or even share it with selected beta readers or whatever. Forgotten Realms, one of the most popular D&D settings, came from the imagination of Ed Greenwood before D&D was created.
New settings should have modern scifi elements, like cybertech, nanotech, biotech, and psionics.
New settings should avoid cosmic evil and so on because that's firmly in the realm of Warhammer 40K.
But how do people create new settings? Most people use inspiration from other intellectual properties, like Dune, Star Wars, etc. Giving people a setting like Charted Space is a very good idea. State up front that Traveller can be used to create original settings, and then hand people Charted Space so they can at least play while they go through the trouble of creating their own universe.
And we should stop referring to younger players like this or any other way which could be demeaning.