>>24611457People who aren't serious about training their pokemon probably never stray far from their home towns, hence a lot of lasses and schoolboys etc. are always near cities and towns. Their parents probably give them allowances to have to spend on pokemon, but they probably don't see it as more than a hobby.
More serious trainers, like ace trainers, are spread out throughout regions and probably made money through winning battles. Rangers probably get paid to watch over nature, and are probably only hired if their pokemon are decently strong.
You see hobbyists out and about too, like hikers and swimmers, but they have to be decent around pokemon of their corresponding type (rock/water respectively) to be out in nature in the first place. If there's a hiker that doesn't know how to handle a graveler or a swimmer that doesn't stay wary of tentacools, they're fucked. So they're forced to be competent with at least one type of pokemon.
Anyways, there's a lot of jobs too, that pay more steadily than battling. Going on a pokemon journey is seen as a rite of passage, but it's not often something people stick with, unless they're successful as hell, so they go on to be gym leaders or gym trainers, even the champion (or wander around as an ace trainer).
